Frank Lampard: Chelsea's Loss to Leicester Raises Heat on Manager

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.”

January 20, 2021