Silva set to miss out as Tuchel slams rest period

THIAGO SILVA will not be thrust quickly back into Premier League action despite an injury to Antonio Rudiger that leaves Chelsea low on central defenders. Brazil captain Silva jetted back to London after playing a full game in a World Cup qualifier against Uruguay in Manaus in the early hours of yesterday. ‘It would be possible in theory,’ said Blues boss Thomas Tuchel, when asked if the 37-year-old was available. ‘If he didn’t play (for Brazil) we would have thought about it but with all the circumstances — he played for 90 minutes, 12 hours of travel, did not hear the team meeting, was not part of the tactical training — I don’t think this is the moment.’ Rudiger will miss today’s game at Brentford after picking up an injury on international duty with Germany. ‘The guys play too many matches,’ explained Tuchel. ‘They don’t have enough time to recover. I have the feeling there are too many breaks. Are we happy about it, all the coaches with the amount of games our players play for their countries? No, we are not. I’ve got used to a lot of things. This is how it is. I don’t like it.’ Tuchel has spared his Chelsea players the usual night away together in a hotel before an away game. Instead, they will meet this morning for the short trip across west London. ‘It’s always a challenge to restart the engine and the momentum,’ he added. ‘I know Brentford have been preparing for this match for two weeks and we have to do it in 48 hours.’ Christian Pulisic is also out and Hakim Ziyech is a doubt after missing two days of training with headaches. Romelu Lukaku is fit after his early release from the Belgium camp and Reece James has recovered from an ankle injury.

Brentford v Chelsea, LIVE on Sky Sports, 5.30pm kick-off.