Atletico Madrid striker Luis Suarez has named the toughest defender he's come up against in his long and successful career.
The 34-year-old scored his 500th career goal in a 1-0 win over Alaves on Sunday, helping Atletico maintain their lead at the top of La Liga. Suarez scored 198 of those goals in a trophy-filled six-year spell at Barcelona.
However it's a current Premier League player - Chelsea's Brazilian ace Thiago Silva - who Suarez picks out as the defender who has always "given me trouble".
Thiago Silva made his name at AC Milan before starring for Paris Saint-Germain for eight years, until he signed a one-year deal at Chelsea last summer.
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The 36-year-old centre-back actually missed the west London's 3-0 aggregate Champions League win over Atletico in the last 16 of the competition. (Although he was kicking every ball in the stands.)
But Suarez has faced Thiago Silva before in the competition, when Barca have played PSG, as well as when Brazil have faced Uruguay at international level. And clearly Suarez did not enjoy the experience.
"A defender that has given me trouble and that I have faced several times was Thiago Silva," said Suarez, per Metro, when asked to name the best he'd come up against.
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"He is an admirable defender who I have always liked."
Suarez has had a lengthy career in Spain, facing the likes of Sergio Ramos at Real Madrid, plus three and a half years in the Premier League with Liverpool before that.
He's also faced the best international defenders, as he's amassed 116 caps and scored 63 goals for Uruguay over 14 years.
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So it's a pretty huge compliment to Thiago Silva that Suarez has picked the Brazil captain out above the many world-class centre-backs that he's come up against.
All imagery: PA Images
Featured Image Credit:Topics: Thiago Silva, Luis Suarez, Uruguay