Frank Lampard felt too many Chelsea players didn’t do the
“basics and bare minimums” during the Blues’ 2-0 defeat to Leicester City at
the King Power Stadium.
First-half goals from Wilfred Ndidi and James Maddison
condemned Lampard’s side to their fifth defeat in their last eight Premier
League matches.
The loss leaves Chelsea eighth in the top-flight table at
the halfway point of the campaign. It’s little surprise Lampard’s job is under
severe pressure.
“There were quite a lot of moments in the first half that
our sharpness wasn’t there,” Lampard told Sky Sports after tonight’s defeat.
“Sometimes that relates to poor form but those are the
moments you have to dig in and the basics and bare minimums are to run, to
sprint and cover ground. Too many of our players didn’t do it.
“The most disappointing thing is to come here and lose the
game. Leicester are a good team, they can beat anyone and are in good form at
the moment.
“But the basics of the game off the ball are important. Our
game on the ball was ok at times, it was a bit slow and they made it difficult
for us and we were content to go backward.
“We created a few little opportunities. We were probably a
bit unlucky as I thought it was a penalty on the edge of the box as I’ve seen
them given recently but I won’t lean on that. Our game wasn’t there.”
Lampard’s starting XI included just three outfield players
over the age of 25: Antonio Rudiger, Thiago Silva and Mateo Kovacic.
The Chelsea head coach was quick to point to the
inexperience of his side and stated his young players will have learned
important lessons during the defeat.
“Five losses in eight is not where I want to be,” Lampard
said. “It takes character to turn that around.
“It was quite a young team today so they won’t be feeling
nice. I’m not against the lads in the dressing room there because they’re
disappointed and learnt a lesson against a team that was sharp and playing
well.
“A month ago we were that team: we were flying against Leeds
with bundles of energy and quality.
“It’s a big lesson for some of the players that if you come
off it, if you think you’re fine, that’s when you can lose confidence and lose
that feeling to run because it comes with confidence. You’ve got to dig
yourself out of that hole.”