The Italian made the switch from Naples to London less than 18 months ago but his ability to control games from the centre of the field and his infectious personality have already seen him develop into a dressing room leader.

Frank Lampard recognised his qualities in the summer when he made him our vice-captain and Jorginho’s importance to the team can be seen in the statistic that he has started 49 of our past 51 Premier League matches. If he lines up again in the west-versus-east London derby today, he will be making a milestone appearance that even he was surprised to hear about when informed this week.

‘I’m very happy but also surprised because I didn’t know about it,’ he told the official Chelsea website in an exclusive interview. ‘It’s an important thing for me of course so hopefully I play and reach 50 games.

‘It’s very different in the Premier League but I like this championship so much. It’s quite hard because it’s the most difficult league in the world and so much more physical. You have to run more and fight more for every single ball but I’m learning a lot and improving all the time.’