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LONDON. – Chelsea midfielder Cesc Fabregas worked hard to win back his place in the starting line-up last season and has been rewarded for his excellent attitude, his manager Antonio Conte said. Ahead of yesterday’s final Champions League group match against Atletico Madrid, Fabregas has played more than any other Chelsea midfielder this season in terms of minutes on the pitch. At the same stage last season, Fabregas had started just four games in all competitions.

“I think Cesc at the start of the last season did not play a lot, but I was very happy because through work he tried to change my mind and it happened,” Conte told reporters. Conte said that in the early part of last season he started nearly every game with N‘Golo Kante and Nemanja Matic in central midfield but Fabregas played many games in the run-in. “I think he was very important for us to win the title last season,” Conte said. – Reuters.