Profile: Jody Morris

Morris has played for the England Under-21 team

Jody Morris has always struggled to hold down a regular place in Chelsea's cosmopolitan team.

Under all of the Chelsea managers that he has played for - Ruud Gullit, Gianluca Vialli and Claudio Ranieri - Morris has been considered an important member of the squad, but nothing more than that.

Three years ago Vialli famously fielded a Chelsea team in a Premier League match at Southampton that began the game with 11 overseas players.

It was a day that Morris predictably was on the substitutes bench.

As a midfielder his progression has been successively blocked by an array of overseas internationals such as Roberto di Matteo, Didier Deschamps and more lately Emmanuel Petit.

Born in December 1978 in west London, Morris has spent all his career at Chelsea, working his way up through the youth ranks, like John Terry.

Peter Taylor picked Morris for the England U-21 team

Six years ago he featured in a television documentary about the lives of young football trainees.

Morris is a confident performer and although he has expressed his frustration with the policy of bringing in overseas players he does not look out of place alongside them.

Morris was introduced to the England under-21 set-up when the current Brighton manager Peter Taylor coached the national side's upcoming talent.

In the past Taylor has spoken highly of Morris.

"He is a player I really like and he has got great ability."