Frank Lampard was always going to get time to prove himself at Chelsea.

As a player he helped the club win major honours and he’s the club’s all-time leading goalscorer. Being a Blues legend was always going to be looked on favourably by the Stamford Bridge crowd.

He also walked into the Chelsea hot-seat knowing he couldn’t purchase any new players as the London giants were serving a transfer ban (Source BBC).

Some of the more pessimistic of the support may have raised their eyebrows as their young Chelsea team lost 4-0 to Manchester United in the opening weekend of the Premier League. But in the most part fans were still happy to wait and see what Lampard could do as Chelsea’s boss.

They haven’t had to wait long to see how things will work and work well under Frank.

We are now in late October and The Blues currently sit in fourth place in England’s top flight and they also lead their Champions League group. Last night they produced a great performance to beat Ajax in the Champions League (Guardian Match Report).

Now things weren’t exactly bad under former manager Maurizio Sarri. The Italian coach took Chelsea to the Europa League title and they finished third in the league.

The problem was that the Italian struggled to endear himself to the home support as his tactics were odd, yet he stuck to them throughout the season no matter if they were working or not. So when Serie A champions Juventus came along to take Sarri’s services no one at Chelsea was really there to fight off their advances.

Chelsea brought in an inexperienced boss in Frank Lampard but he’s a hungry and very ambitious young gaffer. He knows the club inside out and that got fans excited.

He has brought Jody Morris with him and that’s a another great move because the former Chelsea midfielder had worked a lot previously with the young talent in The Blues academy.

Chelsea have had a great youth set-up for a few years now but instead of progressing these young talents into their first team, their previous managers would use Roman Abramovich’s millions to buy already established stars.

As already stated Lampard hasn’t had that opportunity and he actually lost experienced players like David Luiz, Gary Cahill and Eden Hazard. Lampard has combated those departures by bringing youth through and it has worked wonders.

Mason Mount, Tammy Abraham and Fikayo Tomori are all under twenty-three and have spent time away on loan deals. Lampard has given all three a chance this term and they’re now mainstays in his first eleven. They’ve done extremely well and have received call-ups into Gareth Southgate’s England squad.

Mount looks to be a player right out of Lampard’s book. Has an eye for goal, is energetic and makes very smart forward runs.

Striker Abraham has been given the Blues number nine jersey and he’s led the line excellently thus far. Tammy’s the Premier League’s joint top scorer with eight strikes to his name and he has scored his first European goal.

Tomori has come in and really helped the backline. The twenty-one year old centre-back has come in, been composed and consistent. He passes the ball out of defence and wins a good percentage of aerial battles.

It’s hard to look back and see any other Chelsea boss giving these kids a sustained chance in the first team.

These players have re-energised Stamford Bridge. They aren’t bit part players they are the stars that are difference makers in big games!

To show how much things have changed at Chelsea under Lampard, look at Callum Hudson-Odoi’s situation.

Hudson-Odoi could be the best youngster Chelsea have. Yet it seemed his future lay away from The Bridge. No matter how much Chelsea struggled last term Callum was never given a prolonged stay in the Chelsea starting line-up. Maurizio Sarri just wouldn’t use him more than as a bit part player.

That clearly frustrated that youngster and he requested to leave. German cracks Bayern Munich actively made him their number one target and really pushed for him (From Sky Sports). Chelsea’s hierarchy remained resilient and refused to sell.

Lampard then arrives and he gives youth their chance to shine. Hudson-Odoi comes back from a bad injury and immediately commits his future at Chelsea by signing a new contract (via The Telegraph). He did that because he saw a pathway into the Chelsea team, it wasn’t about money. He then gets fit and Frank puts him into the team. Hudson-Odoi repays the faith shown in him by producing three assists in his first three league games of the season!

That message is huge for the academy and they’ll now have young players ready to fight tooth and nail to prove they can star in the Chelsea first team.

It has also revitalised the whole first-team squad.

Senior players like Willian and N’Golo Kante have once again impressed. Club captain Cesar Azpilicueta had an iffy start to the current campaign but the experienced Spaniard is back to being his dependable best. Central midfielder Jorginho has been in sparkling form, the Italian is playing better under Lampard than he was last term under his mentor Sarri.

Other fringe players are understanding they need to make the most of any opportunities. New boy Christian Pulisic is still finding his feet in English football but he has shown glimpses of great touches and ability. In his last three substitute appearances, he’s created two assists and helped change games. The US international is now knocking on his bosses door asking for a starting place. Hitman Michy Batshuayi has scored twice in his last two games (only twenty-five minutes).

Chelsea have won their last six games in a row.

It’s not just that run that’s been impressive it’s how they’ve gone about their business too. They press opponents, are very energetic, like to attack teams and still remain disciplined (they’ve kept three clean sheets in that winning run). The fans are enjoying football again at Stamford Bridge.

As is Lampard who was very happy with the team’s performance in Amsterdam:

“I think we’re allowed to be excited tonight. That’s the blueprint. There are no excuses for us now. That’s the standard and we can’t drop it.”

Via BBC Sport

That feel good factor is all down to Frank Lampard and his determination to do things his way. He’s giving youngsters their chance and he’s also giving senior players the added responsibility to keep things going.

If Chelsea can remain patient then they could be in for a special era at the club. They might not win silverware this season and they might not finish within touching distance of Manchester City or Liverpool but they will grow and get stronger and could be challenging for major trophies within the next two years!

Posted on October 24th, 2019 by scott
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