"The risk of death was real" - How Brazil's Thiago Silva almost died in Russia

Thiago Silva could be on the verge of World Cup success this summer, but he almost died in Russia in 2005.

Silva is captaining the Selecao in the 2018 World Cup, and his side plays Belgium on Friday. The team are already favourites for the tournament, more so after the elimination of Spain, Germany and Argentina.

Silva had a loan spell with Dynamo Moscow 13 years ago in 2005, when he was aged 20. He was signed on a permanent deal to Portuguese side Portugal, but was loaned out to Russia to gain first-team experience.

While Silva enjoyed success at AC Milan and now at Paris Saint-Germain, he had a difficult time in Moscow when he contracted tuberculosis. The next six months were spent combatting the effects of the infection, rather than any kind of football life.

Speaking to Bleacher Report, his coach at the time, Ivo Wortmann described how the defender faced a battle not just for his career, but for his life:

“I was devastated when I saw him. One day, the doctors told me Thiago had a hole in his lung and had to go through surgery. The risk of death was real,” Wortmann told Bleacher Report.

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“They warned me ‘Do not expect him to go back to training’. It would be the end of his career. How could he run without a part of his lung?”

Silva decided to retire from football following the illness, but regained full health and fitness and ultimately restarted his career back in Brazil with Fluminense.