Fulham manager Silva sings Bassey praise, posits he will become a world-class defender

Fulham’s coach, Marco Silva, has heaped praises on Super Eagles defender, Calvin Bassey after he won the man-of-the-match award in his side’s 2-1 win over Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal on Sunday.

Bassey, 24, celebrated his birthday in style, as he put in a colossal performance at the back, completing 95 percent of the passes he attempted. Silva, speaking in his post-match conference, was full of praise for the Nigerian defender, claiming he celebrated his birthday in grand style.

“What a performance. It’s his birthday and it was a nice way to celebrate, but what a performance from him. He’s growing and showing that we took the right decision when we signed a player like him, a player with great, great skills to be a top central defender in the future,” the ex-Wolves boss said to the club’s official website.

The Portuguese tactician believes the former Rangers defender can become one of the best central defenders in world football as long as he keeps improving.

“Right now, he is a very good central defender. I believe that if he keeps improving, and understanding what we want from the game, he is going to be a very, very good level central defender for many years in this football club,” the 46-year-old added.

With Bassey and Iwobi set to be out of Fulham’s plans for the next month due to the AFCON tournament, the coach termed the situation to be unfortunate but claims he’s pleased for the Super Eagles central defender.

“He’s strong, he’s quick, he has quality on the ball, always has the right mindset to learn, to listen, to improve every single day. I’m pleased for him. Unfortunately, we are going to lose him for a long time now because he’s going to the Africa Cup of Nations,” the Fulham coach concluded.

Bassey has started the last three games the Super Eagles have played and is set to be an important part of the defence in his debut tournament for the Green and Whites.