Lampard banks on Chelsea youngsters, denies rift with Luiz
Chelsea’s manager Frank Lampard arrives at a media conference in Cobham on Friday. Reuters
Chelsea’s all-time record goalscorer begins his managerial reign at the club on Sunday away to Manchester United in the Premier League and it would be no surprise if his team includes the likes of Tammy Abraham, Fikayo Tomori and Mason Mount.
While Chelsea’s transfer ban and the departure of Eden Hazard to Real Madrid means Lampard’s task is a sizeable one, the former midfielder believes it is an opportunity for the club to push through youth.
Midfielder Mount, 20, striker Abraham, 21, and defender Tomori, also 21, were all on loan at Championship club Derby County last season when Lampard cut his teeth in management and almost got the Rams promoted.
Had Chelsea been able to make new signings the chances are they may have been farmed out again. Instead they are integral to Lampard’s plans.
“Last year was a great experience working with them because they are hungry, they want to learn, they ask questions on the training pitch and I love that,” Lampard said.
“I understand the position we are in with the ban. It brings up different possibilities, albeit it’s tough in a way, it’s also an opportunity for the young lads to prove that they are good enough to get into the first team.
“I want to be competitive and want us to win, so it won’t be all about how many young players I can get in the team.
“But if they show themselves in training I will have no fear in putting them in.”
While expectation levels at Chelsea are lower this year, Lampard says the target is still to challenge for the title, although finishing in the top four again would be seen as success for his first season in charge.
“Its a hard one,” he said. “Chelsea are normally in the title race to some degree. It’s getting harder particularly with the standards set by (Manchester) City and Liverpool last year, we understand there is a gap to the rest of us.
Meanwhile, Lampard insists there was no rift with David Luiz after claims the Brazil defender went on strike before his shock move to Arsenal.
Luiz joined Arsenal in an £8 million ($7.25 million) deal on Thursday after reportedly falling out with Lampard over what he perceived as a diminished role in the team.
The 32-year-old was said to have become a disruptive influence at Chelsea’s Cobham base and did not train with the team on Wednesday before completing his switch to London rivals Arsenal on deadline day.
Lampard was adamant he took the decision for Luiz to miss training and made it clear the pair had spoken amicably before agreeing the centre-back should leave.
“We had some conversations over the last week, honest conversations because I know David well. And I think the conclusion of that was that he moved on,” Lampard said on Friday.
“There certainly wasn’t any strikes. And in terms of fall-outs, no, there weren’t. There were honest conversations.
“The day that David didn’t train was a decision that I made because we were in the middle of this where we were talking and it was quite clear which way it was going.”
Luiz spent six-and-a-half seasons with Chelsea across two spells, winning the Premier League and Champions League while playing alongside Blues legend Lampard. The former Derby boss was believed to have told Luiz -- who was a regular in their Europa League-winning side last term -- he would have to fight for his place, with Andreas Christensen and Kurt Zouma having been picked for Chelsea’s final pre-season friendly.
Agence France-Presse
