CHELSEA ..... 2 N FOREST ...... 0

DAVID LUIZ said an emotional goodbye to Cesc Fabregas and insisted English football is losing one of its greats.

Fabregas played his 501st and potentially final game in this country before going to France yesterday to sign a three-year deal with Monaco.

There he will be reunited with his ex-Arsenal team-mate Thierry Henry.

The midfielder, a World Cup and double European Championship winner with Spain, spent less time at Chelsea than with the Gunners but won more silverware, including two Premier League titles.

Although he missed a penalty as an Alvaro Morata double sunk Championship underdogs Nottingham Forest, that was not the reason he left the pitch, to a standing ovation, in tears.

Fabregas always insisted it would be hard to leave Chelsea – and Luiz revealed how he gave an emotional farewell speech in the dressing room after the final whistle. The Brazilian said: “He did a speech and then after that we all thanked and hugged him.

“It’s not etiquette to tell you what he said. It’s always difficult to lose players, especially like him, because he’s a world-class player.

“But if it’s better for him and better for the club, we have to understand that.

“It was emotional, not just for him but for everybody. He was one of the best players playing in England.