Maurizio Sarri reacts to Olivier Giroud's hat-trick against Dynamo Kiev

Chelsea manager Maurizio Sarri has praised Olivier Giroud following his maiden Blues hat-trick against Dynamo Kiev in the Europa League.

The France international has dropped down the pecking order since the arrival of Gonzalo Higuain in January and he has earned most of his gametime in Europe.

Still, the 32-year-old has maintained a reasonable scoring run and he recently produced a strong performance against Dynamo by netting his maiden hat-trick alongside an assist.

Speaking after the game, Sarri was pleased with the performance from the former Arsenal man and highlighted his importance in the first-team squad despite his reduced playing time.

"Olivier is, for us, a very important player. I am really very happy for him and for the hat-trick, and I am really very happy with him," he was quoted as saying by Sky Sports.

With the hat-trick, Giroud has netted 10 goals in the Premier League but nine of those have come in the Europa League. His current deal expires in the summer but the Blues are expected to trigger the one-year option available.

Chelsea progressed to the quarter final stage of the Europa League following a comfortable 8-0 aggregate win over Dynamo. They are scheduled to face Slavia Prague in the last eight of the competition.