Super Frank Thread

[Superblue 6,331]

2 hours ago, Jason said:

One good thing I must say and I don't think this has been mentioned is that Lampard hasn't moaned much about the injury problems we have had, especially of late! He just look at the options we have - from the first team and academy - and try to put together a competitive squad out there for matches. It's night and day compared to what someone like Mourinho is doing at Spurs. Two key players out and he has been moaning like it's the end of the world, he can't do much more etc. Hasn't even tried to look into Spurs' academy for options. Imagine the BS he would do if he's in Lampard's position right now!

For Troy Parrott at present, he has to be considering his future. Yes he's only just turned 18 years old and obviously has a lot to learn and develop but he has already been capped by the Republic of Ireland.

If he can't get a game at present when Spurs have no fit first team strikers, and keeps hearing Jose Mourinho talk about no options in press conferences, you have to wonder if he'll ever get chances under him. He's not even making the bench in some games.

Lampard has placed faith and belief in a player in a similar circumstance and is reaping the rewards whilst Spurs continue to falter.

[communicate 2,703]

5 hours ago, Jason said:

One good thing I must say and I don't think this has been mentioned is that Lampard hasn't moaned much about the injury problems we have had, especially of late! He just looks at the options we have - from the first team and academy - and try to put together a competitive squad out there for matches. It's night and day compared to what someone like Mourinho is doing at Spurs. Two key players out and he has been moaning like it's the end of the world, he can't do much more etc. Hasn't even tried to look into Spurs' academy for options. Imagine the BS he would do if he's in Lampard's position right now!

Tbf, losing your only two striker is very difficult. Imagine if we have to play Michy till the end of the season or in Spurs case, we have to play mount as striker. 

[MoroccanBlue 5,192]

23 minutes ago, communicate said:

Tbf, losing your only two striker is very difficult. Imagine if we have to play Michy till the end of the season or in Spurs case, we have to play mount as striker. 

I know Spurs fans still have issues with the way he sets them up, even considering their injuries. 

[Jase 43,479]

6 hours ago, Mana said:

To be fair on Mourinho, he had used Skipp and Parrott from their youth academy.

Define "used" here. If we're talking about Mourinho just giving them minutes, then sure he has. But if we're talking about Mourinho actually integrating them into the first team and making good use of them, then no.

In Mourinho's 25 games at Spurs, Skipp and Parrott have played only 200 and 30 minutes respectively. That's like him just handing out some minutes so that he can say "Who says I don't play young players?". 

[Jase 43,479]

5 hours ago, communicate said:

Tbf, losing your only two striker is very difficult. Imagine if we have to play Michy till the end of the season or in Spurs case, we have to play mount as striker. 

Still no excuse for Mourinho to moan all the things he has and basically do nothing to try and work around the injuries. 

Our recent game against Spurs is a good example of how both managers work around problems. We had injuries, had been in inconsistent form and yet Lampard still set us up to play on the front foot and take the game to them but Mourinho set Spurs up to sit back and defend with a back 5 and launch hopeful long balls for Bergwijn, Moura etc to chase and make something of it. 

[Jase 43,479]

8 hours ago, Superblue_1986 said:

For Troy Parrott at present, he has to be considering his future. Yes he's only just turned 18 years old and obviously has a lot to learn and develop but he has already been capped by the Republic of Ireland.

If he can't get a game at present when Spurs have no fit first team strikers, and keeps hearing Jose Mourinho talk about no options in press conferences, you have to wonder if he'll ever get chances under him. He's not even making the bench in some games.

Lampard has placed faith and belief in a player in a similar circumstance and is reaping the rewards whilst Spurs continue to falter.

Only the other day Mourinho said Spurs fans don't even know what Parrott look like amid all of the clamoring for him to play.  

[bigbluewillie 1,805]

That sort of approach has been welcomed by supporters, like Martyn Berridge, who has been a season ticket holder for over 30 years and views Chelsea as a "work in progress".Chelsea are 34 points behind Premier League leaders Liverpool

"There has been no discontent," he told BBC Sport. "Everyone realises Lampard is doing a great job with what he's got and it's so refreshing to see so many young players coming through. That's evident from all the fans who sit around me in the Shed End.

"If we win the FA Cup and finish fourth, it would be an absolutely fantastic season."

Fellow fan Rod Hood added: "I had no expectations for anything this season. I'd have been happy with relegation because I believe we could have come back from that.

"I did expect we'd buy someone in January but what has impressed me most is the academy players coming through. It's all well and good buying success, but you have to build success too and the problem with Chelsea is there has been no continuity.

TAKE THAT YOU KNOCKERS AND HATERS

[bigbluewillie 1,805]

13 minutes ago, Mana said:

Yeaaaah, no. If Lampard relegated us, he'll be out the door (in fact he'll be out before the season ends), so this guy doesn't know what he's talking about. Not to mention this will seriously damage the club financially.

I wouldn't expect anything else from you.

You have the ability to turn success, by that I mean turn our fortunes around, into defeat.

[communicate 2,703]

3 hours ago, Jason said:

Still no excuse for Mourinho to moan all the things he has and basically do nothing to try and work around the injuries. 

Our recent game against Spurs is a good example of how both managers work around problems. We had injuries, had been in inconsistent form and yet Lampard still set us up to play on the front foot and take the game to them but Mourinho set Spurs up to sit back and defend with a back 5 and launch hopeful long balls for Bergwijn, Moura etc to chase and make something of it. 

I didn't watch the game so I can't give much opinion. I am not biggest Mou fan but I have sympathy for his situation. 

[Fernando 6,375]

3 hours ago, bigbluewillie said:

That sort of approach has been welcomed by supporters, like Martyn Berridge, who has been a season ticket holder for over 30 years and views Chelsea as a "work in progress".Chelsea are 34 points behind Premier League leaders Liverpool

"There has been no discontent," he told BBC Sport. "Everyone realises Lampard is doing a great job with what he's got and it's so refreshing to see so many young players coming through. That's evident from all the fans who sit around me in the Shed End.

"If we win the FA Cup and finish fourth, it would be an absolutely fantastic season."

Fellow fan Rod Hood added: "I had no expectations for anything this season. I'd have been happy with relegation because I believe we could have come back from that.

"I did expect we'd buy someone in January but what has impressed me most is the academy players coming through. It's all well and good buying success, but you have to build success too and the problem with Chelsea is there has been no continuity.

TAKE THAT YOU KNOCKERS AND HATERS

I agree with the first statement, not relegation. Lol. 

Anyhow it's what I said my expectations for this season was 7 to 10th. 

So far Lampard has gone way beyond my expectations. Especially with the youth which is what I wanted since the first time Carlo was here. We wasted so much money to get a coach for that, that in the end it was one of our own ex players that did that. 

In the end Lampard has done an excellent job. 

[Jase 43,479]

57 minutes ago, communicate said:

I didn't watch the game so I can't give much opinion. I am not biggest Mou fan but I have sympathy for his situation. 

Bless you.

People would have sympathy for Mourinho if he had tried everything (e.g. playing Parrott) and nothing is working. Instead, the second Son got injured as well to go with Kane's injury, he started moaning and giving excuses, like it's the end of the world. It's predictable and tiresome. Mourinho 1.0 would probably be ashamed of Mourinho 2.0. 

[ZaynChelsea 423]

I also believe that the young Mourinho would laugh abt the current Mou.

With regard to our changes in the dugout, it is great to see an ex player lead the youngsters. However, you can't really argue with the hire & fire mentality we established in the club. It paid off well concerning our trophy cabinet.

[communicate 2,703]

On 3/9/2020 at 7:48 PM, Jason said:

Bless you.

People would have sympathy for Mourinho if he had tried everything (e.g. playing Parrott) and nothing is working. Instead, the second Son got injured as well to go with Kane's injury, he started moaning and giving excuses, like it's the end of the world. It's predictable and tiresome. Mourinho 1.0 would probably be ashamed of Mourinho 2.0. 

I have never watched Parrot play,i only know from him from last year fm. But to start as main striker at 18 in epl, imo either you have to be physically strong or really fast otherwise you will suffer. 

[Vesper 27,282]

What is Chelsea’s best centre-back pairing?

https://theathletic.com/1665272/2020/03/11/chelsea-centre-back-tomori-rudiger-christensen-zouma/

There are just over two months left of this season and still nobody can say with any certainty which is Chelsea’s first-choice pairing at centre-back.

Kurt Zouma and Antonio Rudiger appear to be in favour after back-to-back clean sheets in the past week, but a glance at Frank Lampard’s selection policy over his first campaign in charge suggests another change will come sooner rather than later.

Not including the eight occasions when Chelsea have employed a back three, there have been six different partnerships in the middle of the defence across all competitions since that opening fixture away to Manchester United in August.

In fairness to head coach Lampard, some of the adjustments have been caused by a player sustaining an injury as well as the natural inclination to bring back a more experienced player, Rudiger for instance, after recovering from one.

But there is going to be a lot at stake over the run-in with Chelsea having realistic targets to achieve — qualifying for the Champions League via a top-four finish (or top five, depending on Manchester City’s appeal against their UEFA ban) and winning the FA Cup for a ninth time in club history. So the time has surely come to settle on one main pairing. The question is: who should get the nod?

The Athletic has studied the records of all the possible variations (when they have been played in a back four) in an attempt to find the answer…

Kurt Zouma and Fikayo Tomori 

Stats: P 11 W 7 D 2 L 2 (all competitions)

Best game: Ajax 0 Chelsea 1. The duo combined superbly to shut out the 2018-19 Champions League semi-finalists on their own patch in October for what proved to be a crucial victory in qualification for the Champions League last 16.

Worst game: Chelsea 4 Ajax 4. While there were others at fault for some of the goals Ajax scored on the way to building a 4-1 lead in the reverse fixture just two weeks on from the Amsterdam meeting above, Zouma and Tomori were run ragged until the visitors had a couple of players sent off midway through the second half.

Arguments for: The number of positive results alone give a very convincing argument about prioritising this pair. Chelsea’s most consistent form of the season from September 25 to November 9 (W 9 D 1 L 1) came as Zouma and Tomori started together in eight of those fixtures, although Lampard had little choice but to select them because Andreas Christensen and Rudiger were out injured for almost that whole run. Zouma’s physical presence stands out — he leads the way at Stamford Bridge with an average of 2.4 headed clearances a game in the Premier League, while he has the third-most interceptions in the squad and most among defenders (2.1 a match). Tomori has the second-best tally of interceptions (1.53 per game) of the four centre-halves and his extra pace makes for a good combination.

Arguments against: Both have faults in possession, particularly Zouma. The France international has a pass accuracy of 87.29 per cent, but it dips to 75.26 per cent when attempting something more ambitious in the opposition half.

Tomori, who is in his first season as a senior player at Stamford Bridge, was strong in all departments initially but increasingly began to show lapses in concentration as the strain of the schedule kicked in. His tackle success rate of 55.17 per cent is the worst of Chelsea’s centre-back quartet.

Kurt Zouma and Andreas Christensen

Stats: P 7 W 2 D 3 L 2

Best game: Chelsea 2 Liverpool 2 (UEFA Super Cup). One of Chelsea’s finest displays of the season, considering the strength of the opposition. Granted N’Golo Kante was providing a lot of protection from midfield, but Zouma and Christensen defended stoutly throughout and Lampard’s side were unfortunate to lose on penalties.

Worst game: Everton 3 Chelsea 1. That season-opening 4-0 loss away to Manchester United could have been chosen too, but the pair were bullied so terribly on the ground and in the air by Dominic Calvert-Lewin that this has to be the pick. The fact they haven’t played together in a back four since that loss in December speaks volumes.

Arguments for: With Christensen’s ability to read the game, it makes for a combination of different strengths. The Dane is more consistent in possession and relieves the pressure from his partner to play out from the back. He has the highest passing accuracy (90.06 per cent) of Chelsea players with a minimum of nine Premier League appearances this season, and a healthy 80.9 per cent completion rate when he crosses the halfway line.

Arguments against: Chelsea haven’t kept a clean sheet in any of the seven matches they’ve started together and despite having good moments in games, opponents seem to find a way to exploit a weakness, especially from crosses or passes from wide into the box. Seven of the 14 goals conceded on their watch have come in this fashion.

Kurt Zouma and Antonio Rudiger

Stats: P 6 W 3 D 1 L 2*

(* Zouma shares the home loss to Manchester United with Christensen, who had to go off at half-time with the score 0-1)

Best game: Chelsea 2 Liverpool 0. Jurgen Klopp may have rotated his side, but Chelsea still restricted Liverpool to very few chances over the course of the FA Cup fifth-round tie. Significantly, the visitors didn’t have a shot on goal for the last hour.

Worst game: Chelsea 0 Bournemouth 1. Lampard’s men fell for the sucker-punch, but the manner in which Zouma and Rudiger defended on the game’s only goal from a corner left a lot to be desired. Neither seemed to be marking anyone particularly closely and it was Zouma who played Dan Gosling onside before he found the net.

Arguments for: They give Chelsea a lot more strength when on the pitch. There is no doubt that both men can provide the kind of robust tackling the crowd enjoys too. The duo have the best tackle success rates among Chelsea centre-backs in the Premier League this season (Rudiger 62.5 per cent, Zouma 57.1) and both will be full of confidence after holding Liverpool and Everton scoreless in the club’s last two matches. Their ability to offer a goal threat — they have scored 22 between them in club football (Zouma 12 and Rudiger nine, whereas Tomori has four but only one for Chelsea and all of Christensen’s seven came while he was out on loan) — shouldn’t be underestimated either.

Arguments against: The partnership is raw, having played just five-and-a-half games, and so they still give chances away. Even in the game against Everton on Sunday which Chelsea dominated, Zouma got tackled upfield and Rudiger was outpaced by Calvert-Lewin, who put a shot wide. Rudiger can be accomplished on the ball in his own half (passing accuracy 92.5 per cent) but on the whole, these two can give it away cheaply under pressure when playing it further forward. Like Zouma, the Germany international’s level drops significantly, in his case to 74.6 per cent.

Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen

Stats: P 5 W 1 D 2 L 2 *

(* Christensen shares the 2-0 loss to Manchester United with Zouma, after playing the first half)

Best game: Chelsea 3 Burnley 0. Most pundits expected the visitors to dominate up front because they had both been exposed at various times in the season when dealing with crosses into their penalty area. But Christensen and Rudiger impressed, keeping Chris Wood subdued.

Worst game: Newcastle 1 Chelsea 0. This was one of the most disappointing defeats under Lampard due to the quality of the opposition and the timing of the winner, coming four minutes into added time. The defending from a set-piece once again led to Chelsea’s downfall, with Rudiger outjumped too easily by matchwinner Isaac Hayden.

Arguments for: Besides their strengths highlighted above, they are also arguably the most experienced combination of the lot. Rudiger has played in the top divisions in England, Germany and Italy, Christensen has over 100 games in the Premier League and Bundesliga on his resume. One tackles aggressively, the other relies on neat timing to get in front of his man.

Arguments against: Despite that display against Burnley, there remains a question over how each of this pair copes with the threat from set-pieces and open play. Rudiger has the lowest duels success rate of 57.3 per cent among the four (compared to Zouma’s quartet-leading return of 66.2) and also the fewest interceptions per 90 minutes at 0.72. Meanwhile, Christensen boasts the fewest recoveries (79, compared with Rudiger’s 94, Tomori at 96 and Zouma with 117). Both are good defenders in their own right, yet there is a doubt over how good an understanding they share.

Andreas Christensen and Fikayo Tomori

Stats: P 4 W 2 D 1 L 1

Best game: Chelsea 2 Brighton 0. Lampard’s team were in control of this September win for long periods, which was partly due to the solid base provided in defence. Christensen and Tomori kept Chelsea’s first clean sheet of the season, although they were relieved when an unmarked Dan Burn sent a header against the crossbar when the score was still 1-0.

Worst game: Bournemouth 2 Chelsea 2. Unfortunately for their hopes of playing regularly, this game at the end of last month will still be fresh in Lampard’s mind as he mulls his line-up for the run-in. Tomori, who had mysteriously not played any Premier League football in the previous two months, struggled most of all and was substituted shortly after Bournemouth scored twice in four minutes early in the second half.

Arguments for: Playing at their best, both men make tackling look easy and can glide around the pitch. That one defeat on their record came against European, now world and soon to be domestic champions Liverpool. Yet their work in open play was very impressive back then, with Tomori negating Mohamed Salah to much acclaim. Both are comfortable in possession, as shown in Christensen’s passing stats (see Zouma/Christensen entry above) and the fact Tomori has touched the ball 1,348 times in the top division, which is 344 times more than the Denmark international despite playing only 36 more minutes (1,293 to 1,257) in the same number of appearances (15 each).

Arguments against: Neither is the loudest talker on the pitch, which is not ideal for your centre-backs as Lampard wants his players to communicate during games. Tomori has lost the highest percentage of aerial challenges (54.8 per cent, 28 out of 62) among our four candidates and Christensen has been beaten in 40.5 per cent of his 84 (Zouma’s loss rate in this metric is only 25.6 per cent, while Rudiger’s is a whisker better than Christensen’s at 40.3). The fact they have had just four appearances together in a back four all season suggests Lampard prefers fielding them alongside someone else.

The only other pairing used this season was Zouma and Marc Guehi, now on loan at Swansea City of the Championship, in two Carabao Cup ties — winning once and losing once. Tomori and Rudiger have only been played together in a three-man defence.

Conclusion: As Lampard has obviously found, there is no easy resolution.

It should be pointed out there have been other factors in Chelsea’s porous defence throughout the campaign like the form of first-choice goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga, although he has shown signs of improvement since returning from his January benching last week.

All four defenders have strengths and weaknesses in equal measure and buying a more domineering character is on the summer wish-list. Zouma and Rudiger deserve to keep their places after successive clean-sheet victories, but it wouldn’t be surprising if the rotation continues until that final game against Wolves in May.

[Vesper 27,282]

Frank Lampard putting pressure on Chelsea chiefs to change mind on one first-team player

Chelsea head coach Frank Lampard wants Willian to stay with the Blues beyond this season.

https://www.express.co.uk/sport/football/1253876/Chelsea-news-Frank-Lampard-Willian-contract-transfer

[Alabama 1,992]

Lampard and Willian....

Match made in hell...

 

[Vesper 27,282]

Chelsea injuries explained: last season’s legacy, bad luck and reliance on youth

https://theathletic.com/1669134/2020/03/12/chelsea-injuries-frank-lampard/

Two big victories at Stamford Bridge within the space of five days have changed the complexion of a defining stretch of Chelsea’s season. Had they gone out of the FA Cup to Liverpool and fallen out of fourth place with more dropped points against Everton, anxiety would likely have become the prevailing mood — and much of the inquest around the team’s struggles would focus on injuries.

Frank Lampard is unable to call upon top scorer Tammy Abraham (ankle), N’Golo Kante (thigh), Christian Pulisic (thigh), Callum Hudson-Odoi (hamstring) and Mateo Kovacic (achilles soreness), while Mason Mount has been receiving treatment at Cobham for a knock to the knee sustained in Sunday’s win.

When you factor in Jorginho’s suspension and that Ruben Loftus-Cheek is still being carefully managed back to peak condition after a serious achilles rupture, Chelsea are saddled by a list of absentees comparable only to Bournemouth (10 players out), Newcastle United and Tottenham Hotspur (seven each) among Premier League clubs.

Jose Mourinho memorably said Tottenham’s injury problems made him wish he could fast-forward to July 1 after their loss at Stamford Bridge last month. Lampard has struck a more upbeat tone in public, stressing that “injuries mean opportunities” after the Everton win, but behind the scenes he is every bit as frustrated.

Chelsea emerged from their February break with a longer injury list than the one they had entering it, and the situation was made worse when Hudson-Odoi aggravated a hamstring injury during his first training session back with the squad last Thursday. The winger faces another spell on the sidelines while he waits for the muscle to heal.

Hudson-Odoi became the third Chelsea player this season to suffer a re-injury after Pulisic and Emerson, who started a league match against Liverpool in September just a fortnight after picking up a thigh problem on Italy duty only to have to be replaced with 15 minutes played. Pulisic has been out for more than a month since attempting to return to more intense training having not played since New Year’s Day.

These cases have led some outside Chelsea to question the approach of the club’s fitness and medical staff, but the reality of the players’ differing situations is much more complex.

Emerson posted on social media after his enforced substitution in the eighth minute of Italy’s 2-1 win over Finland in September to reassure the fans his thigh injury was not serious, and insisted he felt good in the lead-up to that Liverpool game. Assessment from Chelsea’s medical staff backed up his confidence, and Lampard took both into account when picking his team that day.

Pulisic, 21, felt ready to increase his workload at Cobham by the end of January. Having suffered a similar adductor muscle (found in the thigh) injury during his playing career, Lampard was aware of how difficult the problem can be to shift. The American’s subsequent negative reaction to training wasn’t regarded as a setback, but rather as a young player learning about his body’s recovery rate.

Hudson-Odoi was kept out of action for more than a month before the decision was taken to bring the 19-year-old back into training last week, and there is an acceptance that recovery from hamstring injuries is always a delicate process with considerable variance in recovery time. The particular setback is not expected to sideline him for much longer.

Lampard is not pointing fingers. “I haven’t seen that, and I wouldn’t label it on any one department,” he insisted when asked about criticism of their injury record.

The numbers do suggest Chelsea are suffering more injuries than in previous seasons.

Data compiled by injury analyst Ben Dinnery of premierinjuries.com shows they have suffered 25 separate injuries or illnesses this season, a number surpassed only by Manchester United (26) among the traditional ‘Big Six’ clubs.

That said, most of their rivals have been comparably affected: Tottenham and Liverpool have had 24 injuries, Arsenal 23 and Manchester City 19. In terms of days lost to injury or illness, Chelsea (614) have been less affected than any of the ‘Big Six’ except City (548).

These figures only account for injuries or illnesses significant enough to result in at least one game missed, and injuries carried over from last season are not included — arguably the biggest contributor to Chelsea’s injury problems this term, and the factor that is impossible to lay at the feet of Lampard.

“When we came into this club the injuries that were overlapping from last season were huge,” Lampard said last week. “N’Golo Kante, Toni Rudiger, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, who is yet to kick a ball, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Willian, who had an injury from the start of the season after the internationals. They were there from last year, it has definitely been an issue.

“Now we have another bulk. Christian Pulisic has been out for two months, N’Golo Kante has played 50 per cent of our games when he generally plays 100 per cent. It has been slightly looked at differently with us, with the transfer ban or youth. It has been a big issue for us without a doubt.

“For me, to lose N’Golo Kante, one of the greatest midfielders in the world and Ruben Loftus-Cheek, one of the most exciting English midfield players in the Premier League, is a huge loss for us.”

Kante has played in just 22 of Chelsea’s 42 matches this season, by far the biggest sustained run of injuries of his career. The knee injury that hampered his preparations for last season’s Europa League final disrupted his pre-season, and the knock-on effects are believed to have contributed to the ankle, hamstring and adductor muscle problems he has had since.

Rudiger has featured 16 times this season across all competitions, having undergone knee surgery in the final stretch of the 2018-19 campaign. In his first game back, in the 5-2 win against Wolves at Molineux in September, he slipped on a metal grate by the touchline and aggravated a groin injury that had first troubled him last season under Maurizio Sarri, leading to another three months on the sidelines.

Hudson-Odoi and Loftus-Cheek both sustained achilles ruptures in the final weeks of Sarri’s tenure, while Reece James picked up a serious ankle injury on England Under-20 duty in June. Caution was the guiding philosophy of the rehabilitation process in each case, which is part of the reason why, 10 months on from his injury, Loftus-Cheek is yet to make a first-team comeback.

Chelsea’s injury record in recent seasons had been excellent. They have had fewer injuries or illnesses and endured fewer days lost than their Big Six rivals in three of the last five seasons, including the 2014-15 and 2016-17 campaigns that brought Premier League titles.

There has been considerable turnover in the first-team coaching staff during that period of course, but Paco Biosca, the club’s medical director, has been in his post since 2011. Chris Jones initially became a first-team fitness coach in March 2012 and stayed until Lampard convinced him to join his Derby County staff last season, then brought him back when he succeeded Sarri in the summer.

Lampard credited Jones’s methods with helping him to continue playing at a high level for Chelsea into his 30s, and Jones worked under Mourinho and Antonio Conte as part of a team that oversaw a relatively low injury rate. The club’s large sports science department, led by Tim Harkness, has remained largely constant through several coaching changes, as have the club’s physios.

Among the few new faces this season are Andy Kasper, a highly-regarded performance nutritionist hired last summer to work with the first team, while strength and conditioning coach Adam Burrows came from Derby with Lampard and Jones. Burrows was credited with helping Mount navigate his first Championship campaign while on loan last season.

Chelsea’s first-team squad train on the same pitches at Cobham and use similar equipment to when their injury record was the envy of many of their Premier League rivals — and while Lampard favours intense training sessions, they are no more physically taxing than when Mourinho or Conte were in charge.

Lampard wants his players to train as they play, believing this intensity to be the only way Chelsea can hope to close the vast gap that Manchester City and Liverpool have opened up to the rest of the Premier League. He does, however, stress that sessions should be varied and fun.

Players responded well to Lampard’s approach when it was first introduced, and all the indications are that it is still more popular than the repetitive drills favoured by Conte and Sarri.

“Training was very regimented,” former reserve goalkeeper Rob Green told The Athletic when asked about Sarri’s approach this season. “I remember Olivier Giroud and I sat down and figured out how many times we’d done exactly the same session. We worked out that, over a course of the season, there were only 18 days where we hadn’t done the same thing.

“I can understand why people in the squad who just love and want to play football were thinking, ‘What’s the point of this?’”

Chelsea’s injury issues are regarded internally as a legacy of last season, partly plain bad luck and partly an inevitable consequence of competing across several competitions with a squad deprived of significant reinforcement in the last two transfer windows, leading to greater reliance on young players who are still adjusting to this level of physical workload.

There is hope that the injury list will shorten considerably as the final stretch of the season approaches.

No blame game is taking place — only Lampard continuing to preach that standards are maintained and opportunities to impress are taken.

[MoroccanBlue 5,192]

Not to sound extremely selfish but any decision the FA makes goes in our favor?

Season is null and void, we are still in the CL. 

Season ends how it is, we are still in the CL. 

Only the matter of whether there will be a summer window