Thiago Silva lifts the lid on difficult relationship with ex-PSG boss Emery

Thiago Silva revealed he was often never on the same page with Unai Emery, and spoke of a decision the ex-PSG boss made that left him baffled.

On the back of leading Sevilla to three consecutive Europa League titles, Emery took his talents to Paris Saint-Germain in 2016. The hope was he would be the man to deliver that elusive Champions League title.

An eventful two years followed in the French capital, with the Spaniard winning seven domestic honors. These included a Ligue 1 title, and a domestic treble in the 2017/18 campaign.

Despite his haul of silverware in France, however, Emery fell short where it really mattered. PSG exited the Champions League Last-16 stage twice in a disappointing fashion.

The infamous ‘La Remontada’ loss against Barcelona came first in 2016/17, where PSG blew a four-goal advantage to lose 6-5 on aggregate. Then Real Madrid added to their misery by knocking them out the following season.

🔴🔵 #ThiagoSilva fustige Unai #Emery et ses choix incompréhensibles
➡ https://t.co/tXkE1IIpoB ⬅ #PSG pic.twitter.com/VRtj8kTRqL

— ParisFans (@ParisFansfr) September 29, 2020

The latter defeat remains a sore spot for Silva, having been demoted to the bench for the 3-1 defeat in the first leg in Madrid. Emery did recall him for the return fixture, but it was too a little too late. PSG lost 2-1 in France to exit the Champions League again with a 5-2 aggregate defeat.

“We didn’t often agree with each other,” Silva told France Football about Emery.

“He was the ‘commander’, well, he was paid for that, so I respected his authority, but… In the first leg against Real Madrid, he left me on the bench because he needed a left-footed central defender.

“That was his excuse. This is the first time I’ve spoken about that, but at the time, it was hard to digest. He left [Angel] Di Maria on the bench too. We lost 3-1. In the second leg, he no longer needed a left-footed central defender.

“He put me in the starting line-up! It’s the kind of thing a player doesn’t understand. And this is just one example among many with Emery.”

Silva now plays for Chelsea in the Premier League after leaving PSG during the summer.

Emery, meanwhile, lost his job as PSG coach in 2018 and later again at Arsenal a year later before joining Villarreal in LaLiga over the summer.