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Paris Saint-Germain captain Thiago Silva says he has not given up hope of earning a recall to the Brazil squad after being named in FIFA FIFPro World XI for the third year running. Thiago Silva, 31, was rewarded for his strong performances in 2015 on a night when Barcelona star Lionel Messi won the Ballon d'Or award for a fifth time. The centre-back has impressed in a rock-solid PSG defence that has kept 12 clean sheets in 20 league matches this season. Last season's Ligue 1 winners did not concede a goal in four of the five Champions League group games that the former AC Milan player featured in but he has continued to be overlooked by his national team. The captain of Brazil during the 2014 World Cup, he has not played for the Selecao since giving away a penalty in last summer's Copa America quarterfinal defeat against Paraguay. Brazil coach Dunga hinted in December that Thiago Silva could yet be called up again and the PSG defender has admitted that he would still love to play for his country. "It's difficult because it's the coach's decision," Thiago Silva told L'Equipe 21. "I'm demonstrating with my club that everything is going well but he doesn't think that I should play for Brazil. "We have a nice generation [of players] who had a good start to World Cup qualifying. We'll see." Silva endured a tough time as Brazil captain during the 2014 World Cup in his homeland, a campaign that ended in a 7-1 defeat against eventual champions Germany in the semifinal. But having knuckled down in Paris since then, the ex-Fluminense player thanked his club mates for helping him through a difficult period at the start of last season. "I'm very happy to be in the team of the year for the third time in a row," he said. "I need to say thanks to PSG, the coach, the technical staff and all the players who helped me after the World Cup because it wasn't easy."
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