The midfielder struggled to convince large sections of his club's fanbase last season, but his new manager is keen to highlight his importance
Frank Lampard has moved to highlight his admiration for Chelsea midfielder Jorginho and says he will bring essential qualities to the team this season.
Many thought Lampard might instruct the Blues to sell the Italy international. The 41-year-old says he was delighted to hear Jorginho pledge allegiance to his club and deny that he is only a Sarri player.
"I thought Jorginho was fantastic the other night," Lampard told reporters. "He was constantly talking to people around him and constantly talking to the backline to drag them up and playing with quality.
"The players are the ones who drive that when they get out there. He is a fantastic player. I saw that on the first day of training in Dublin. Talking about his attitude, he is a driver of the group and he has real quality. I am fortunate in midfield at the moment.
"It gives us problems in terms of competition between Kante, Jorginho, [Matteo] Kovacic, [Ross] Barkley, [Mason] Mount, Ruben [Loftus-Cheek] is coming back and others. But Jorginho has really shown himself to be a top-quality player to me already. I am pleased to see his comments. He should be seen as Chelsea's Jorginho.
"As a player, you know that you go and work for the club. He has a real passion for football and performance. I love that."