"This is a new role for Chris. I explained to him that we needed a new identity in midfield and that he could help," said Jol. "He certainly did that. He is a good football player and he is becoming more and more important for us.
"Last season he played right-back and centre-back and I am very pleased that he is so versatile and that he could do that job for us. He is playing for the national team in midfield now too which is good and they got a good result against Portugal.
"He is probably on top of his game and that was exactly what we needed."