John Obi Mikel is undergoing a resurgence in his Chelsea career under manager Guus Hiddink.

The Nigerian, who was given a start ahead of Nemanja Matic, produced another impressive performance for the Blues as they defeated Crystal Palace 3-0 at Selhurst Park.

Hiddink believes that Mikel brings a much-needed balance to his side which is on a four-game unbeaten run in the league since Jose Mourinho was sacked in December.

"He played very well but also in the previous game," said Hiddink of Mikel.

"He's the ideal player in my opinion to bring balance to the team.

"If the team is not willing to defend well, or hasn't got the right balance, then you'll concede a lot of goals.

"I think John Obi can be one of the key figures in bringing back that balance. On this podium very talented players can explore their qualities.

"He can recover his radar, he reads the game very well, he knows where the strength of the opponent is and knows how to combat that. He has very good sense, he doesn't do it in a brutal way, he's very elegant.

"Someone who can defend so smoothly is very beautiful. I don't expect the decisive final pass from him - he can (do that), but he can also let the other players (play)."