He played as a starter in the Libertadores final with Boca and now he makes a living in a restaurant

In an unexpected and surprising post-football career, Santiago Silvaformer forward of Boca Juniors, Velez, banfield and so many other teams, ventured into a new passion far from the flashes of sport: gastronomy.

With memorable moments on the green grass, the 43-year-old Uruguayan now undertakes a new challenge in the culinary world: do you remember all the teams he passed through?The tank” before discovering your new passion?

What was Santiago Silva’s football career like?

He debuted in football in his native country in 1998 in the Spanish Central of the second category. Between 1999 and 2005 he played for a large number of clubs such as: River Plate (Montevideo), Sporting Defender, National, Corinthians (Brazil), FC Energie Cottbus (Germany) and Beira Mar (Portugal).

In 2005 he came to Argentine football where he spent most of his career. In that year, he wears the colors of Newell’s Old Boys where he scored 4 goals in 14 games. From 2006 to 2008, “Tanque” lived in the Buenos Aires capital to play in Gymnastics and Fencing of La Plata where he left a great memory in the Triperos fans.

After his time at Gimnasia, Silva played in Velez Sarfield. There he was Fortín’s top scorer in the 2008 Clausura with 7 goals. In any case, due to a weak performance in the opening of that same year, in 2009 he was loaned to banfield where the former forward stood out with goals.

From the hand of Julio César Falcioni as a coach, a team with great figures (James Rodriguez, Walter Erviti) and an unstoppable Santiago Silva, “The drill” became champion of Apertura 09which meant the first title of the professional era for the club.

In 2010, Silva returned to Vélez revalued by his great year on the southern team. This time he did not disappoint the Fortín fans and emerged as the top scorer in the Apertura championship with 11 goals. That year, the former forward was marked by a penalty that he missed in the semi-finals of Libertadores vs Peñarol, but in any case he vindicated himself by scoring more goals so that Vélez becomes champion of Argentine soccer again in the Clausura 2011.

After a brief passage through the Fiorentinain the summer of 2012 Silva arrived at one of the big 5 of our football: Boca Juniors. At the riverside club it didn’t go bad at all: He played back and forth as a starter in the 2012 Libertadores final and He scored a goal in the final of the Argentine Cup that helped Xeneize become champion. Furthermore, in the Superclásicos it was key so that the eternal rival, River, could not win. First a goal in the remembered 2-2 at the Monumental in the 2012 Initial and then another goal for the 1-1 in the 2013 Final in La Bombonera.

Silva shouting a goal in Boca

In 2013, the Uruguayan reached Lanus, eternal rival of his former team Banfield, where he has done very well. In a team full of good players, Silva was key in obtaining the 2013 Copa Sudamericana scoring important goals. It should be noted that, in said Cup, the Uruguayan once again became the executioner of “La Banda”. With the Barros Schelotto directing, Granate won his second international title.

In 2015, Santiago leaves Lanús starting an important club journey: Arsenal, banfield (second cycle), Catholic (Chili), Workshops, Gym (again) and Argentinos Juniors.

Playing for “El Bicho”, Santiago Silva had to face the hardest moment of his career when he received a 2-year suspension in 2020. In a doping control in 2019, when he was still playing for Gimnasia, the Uruguayan was found more testosterone than usual. According to the former forward, the hormonal change was the product of a treatment that he was undergoing in order to be a father again. After back and forth, the scorer served his sentence at almost 40 years of age.

In 2022, Aldosivi from Mar del Plata It opened the doors for him to play again. After competing all that year, and after having gone down with the shark, the Tank went to the club The stick from Spain where He retired at 42 years old.

Santiago Silva in Silvando

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What Santiago Silva did after his retirement

Although the glory days of the stadiums are behind us, the game continues on a new field: the kitchen of your restaurant “Silvando“. With the same determination and passion that characterized him in his football career, he now embarks on the adventure of delighting palates and creating unforgettable experiences for his guests.

Decorated with shirts from the clubs he passed through, the place breathes football and nostalgia. In “Silvando”, the former soccer player fuses the best of Spanish food with touches of his homeland, Uruguayand the homeland of his sporting exploits, Argentina. The restaurant shows a piece of its history, a legacy that transcends the borders of sport and becomes a symbol of perseverance and reinventing oneself.

“Silvando” Santiago Silva’s restaurant

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Santiago Silva’s career in our football has no equal. The former Boca is the Uruguayan footballer with the most goals in the history of Argentine football, with 133 scores to his credit, thus surpassing Enzo Francescoli himself (115). Now, the Tank has his career in kitchens and promises the same success.