Gary Neville says he is shocked that Chelsea considered letting N'Golo Kante leave in the summer.
The popular midfielder was linked with a move to Inter Milan in order to reunite with former Blues boss Antonio Conte.
Yet the French World Cup winner eventually stayed at Stamford Bridge and was restored to his favoured holding midfield role for the Blues' 3-0 win over Burnley.
Speaking on his Sky Sports podcast, Neville said it was the best position for Kante to play and that he can provide the defensive cover needed for other players to attack more.
Neville said: "It's a modern phenomenon to play a player in that position who is good on the ball and can control the game.
"We've seen the likes of Xavi and other controlling players do it like Pirlo.
"When you think of Fabinho, Fernandinho and Kante, they're classic midfield players who aren't incompetent on the ball by any stretch of the imagination.
"In fact they're quite sensible on the ball and play good passes and start attacks up but predominantly they read danger, they intercept and break up attacks, they're a centre-half's dream."
He added: "Kante playing there seems to be the logical conclusion for keeping him at the club.
"When I saw reports in the summer that Jorginho was leaving, I wasn't surprised, but when I saw reports in the summer that Kante might leave, I was shocked.
"I thought, Frank, he's not a player that you want to lose.
"He's a unique player in the sense that I imagine every other player in the squad loves him and he does his job brilliantly.
"He tackles players. People might think that's a simple thing to do but to take the ball off an opponent in the Premier League is a difficult thing to do, particularly when you've got referees and players who are protecting the ball.
"Kante does it brilliantly and I think that is the solution to get him there and let the others in front roam a little bit more.
"He could be the bodyguard of the team."
