Pat Nevin: Why I really admire Chelsea star, his talent is rare
The Chelsea legend defends Brazilian defender David Luiz
Pat Nevin has spoken of his admiration for Chelsea defender David Luiz.
The Brazil international has endured something of a tough start to the Premier League season despite playing a key role in their title success last term.
Chelsea manager Antonio Conte opted to drop the South American for the visit of Manchester United earlier this month amid talk of a fallout with Luiz.
His replacement Andreas Christensen was impressive as he kept Romelu Lukaku quiet in Chelsea’s 1-0 victory over their title rivals.
Luiz returned to Chelsea in the 2016 summer transfer window following a £32m transfer from Ligue 1 giants Paris Saint-Germain.
The Brazilian played a key role in their title success alongside Cesar Azpilicueta and Gary Cahill to help Chelsea win their second top-flight crown in three seasons.
Former Chelsea winger Nevin described Luiz as a rare breed in Premier League football as the 31-year-old looks to reclaim his starting spot.
“He is precisely the type of footballing defender that I admire and think is all too rare in the British game,” Nevin told Chelsea’s website.
“It was therefore rather annoying that out-of-context comments on a website suggested I was saying he was the cause of some recent under-par performances.
“He is one of my favourite players in world football and I would be hugely miffed if anyone including David thought I had anything but high regard for him then, now or indeed going forward at Chelsea.”
Luiz won the Champions League with Chelsea in 2012 thanks to his masterful performance in a penalty shootout victory over Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena.
Chelsea signed six players in the summer transfer window to bolster their squad ahead of a return to the Champions League.
