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Eden Hazard is finally back from injury and has made his first start for Chelsea in the 5-1 defeat of Nottinhgham Forest in the Carabao Cup.

Former Arsenal star Charlie Nicholas believes while Chelsea can afford to do without Hazard, defensive players like N’Golo Kante and Thibaut Courtois are arguably more important to Chelsea than the Chelsea superstar.

Asked by Sky Sports if Kante was Chelsea’s most important player, Nicholas said: “Yes. And even the goalkeeper comes into that category for me.

“The reason is because you can have a quiet time, Hazard can have a quiet time, and the rest of the guys have got to do their jobs.

“Obviously in the US you would say Most Valuable Player, he (Hazard) is in that category for Chelsea.

“He’s their best player. He’s a mega talent. And he’s a match-winner for them. But there’s more important players you’d have to fit in.

“After all, we see the response, it was his first start last night of the season. Thankfully he didn’t start against Arsenal last weekend. You can see the importance of the other players, but he is their go-to player.”