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Chelsea news: Eden Hazard sends David Luiz message to Antonio Conte after fallout
EDEN HAZARD says David Luiz is the funniest player at Chelsea.
Luiz has been at the forefront of Chelsea speculation in the past week after he was dropped from the matchday squad to face Manchester United.
Without him Andreas Christensen took his place in the starting XI and put in a commanding display to stop United striker Romelu Lukaku from scoring.
After the match, Chelsea boss Antonio Conte said he was unsure if Luiz had a future at Stamford Bridge.
But Hazard remains a big fan of the centre-back and hailed his influence in the dressing room - hinting to his manager that the Brazilian should remain part of his plans.
David Luiz and Eden Hazard are close friends
Always smiling, he is in a good mood every time, so it is good to have people like this in the changing room
When asked who was the funniest member of the Chelsea squad, Hazard told Soccer AM: “David Luiz, the geezer.
“Always smiling, he is in a good mood every time, so it is good to have people like this in the changing room. He is funny.”
Commenting on Luiz’s omission, former Chelsea player Ray Wilkins reckoned Conte made the right decision.
"He's not been playing well," Wilkins told Premier League Daily.
"He's lackadaisical as a defender but I think he is a very good midfield player and I have said this on numerous occasions.
Antonio Conte was furious with David Luiz
"Christensen came in yesterday and played very, very well indeed in a massive game.
"How many times do you see Christensen in advance of the ball? You don't, because he thinks defensively.
"With Luiz you see him in advance of the ball on numerous occasions during every game he plays and consequently, Chelsea suffer defensively.
"I thought the decision to drop Luiz was the right decision. I saw him play against Roma [a 3-0 Champions League defeat] the other night and he didn't look anywhere near it. That was a poor performance.
"Yesterday was one of effervescence, they had life, and I thought Chelsea deserved to win."