Frank Lampard was pleased with all three points Tuesday night at Stamford Bridge, with a 1-0 home win against Norwich City. But the Chelsea head coach also noted that performance problems still persist.
The scoreboard does not reflect Chelsea’s dominance against the worst team in the Premier League, but it also underscores the Blues’ frequent inability to fend off the lower opposition, like the visitors already relegated last night.
Chelsea could have had three goals at the end of the first half alone, with Olivier Giroud and Christian Pulisic missing solid opportunities.
“Ideally you get first, then you score one or two more, but you look at the action last night with Manchester United and then Leicester, the games that are happening.” It is so intense at the end of the business, so you get your three points. ”
“There were many elements of our game that we would like to improve, we could have caused them more problems with the ball and there was not enough rotation.” We really didn’t give them a chance, we defended ourselves well enough and got our three points. ”
“We control it well. It was one of the things he was quite satisfied with. We moved Azpi to the other side and they brought in Buendía about who is a dangerous player who gets out of line. We were attacking quite a bit from the sides and I felt it was time for security and pass security. We had 10 to 15 minutes in the second half, where we were sloppy and sloppy again. We pass back to ourselves. It’s a trait that comes back to our game, but we got out of it and ended it well. ”
Chelsea 1-0 Norwich FT:
Shooting: 22-2
Shots On Target: 6-0
Pass Accuracy: 89% -76%
Possession: 68% -32%Olivier Giroud had 4 times more shots than Norwich. https://t.co/Gy0C9uwn93
– Squawka Football (@Squawka) July 14, 2020
Consistency is an issue that Lampard has spoken at length at his press conferences throughout the season, while pointing to the gap between the elite teams, Liverpool and Manchester City, and the rest of the Premier League. It is certainly a quality that stands out when comparing the last two title winners and this current Chelsea team.
But while clearly we still have a lot of work to do, Lampard is also delighted that his young team, one of the youngest in Premier League history, is also making it to league and Cup competitions after twelve months of work.
“I think we can be happy with where we are now. I don’t want to jump the gun because we have games that will be fundamental to where we really end up. But if we had said that we would be third and compete in the FA Cup and the Champions League. I know it will be very difficult, but we made it through the group stage. “
“You see the transition of the team and the youth. Many of our players were on loan last season, most of whom were in the Championship. We can be very happy, I think there is a lot of work to do. I don’t think we should get too excited. ”
“The gap is clear for Liverpool and Man City in terms of points. We are a work in progress. There is too much to do. I am happy and I want much more. But when we return for the start of next season, however, this season. We have to tackle it and start closing the gap. It will be hard work. “
The results at this stage of the season are critical. Obtaining enough points to ensure a top four result and securing the Champions League for next season is vital. There are no style bonus points.
With two games remaining against Liverpool (A) and Wolves (H), Lampard is well aware that the job is not done. If Lampard wants to fulfill a tacit contractual obligation with the new Three UK kit lords to make number three relevant in every respect, Chelsea must secure a minimum of four points to ensure an acceptable finish.
“I keep talking about mentality, but I don’t really like the word bottle. When you face Liverpool and Wolves at home, they are just two really good opponents, so we just have to focus on those games one by one. We have to prepare properly and show the right attitude, and I think we did it tonight. Those two games will look completely different tonight. “
“So instead of talking about the bottle, I want to talk about focus and attitude, and then I hope we have enough to overcome, but it will be difficult.”
Consistency. Attention. Attitude. These are the mantras that Lampard wants his young squad to display, so much so that he’s willing to keep his team free of distractions.
While Manchester United succumbing to a late draw with Southampton is remarkable and fun, Lampard kept his team focused on themselves and on tonight’s game.
“I didn’t really talk to them about it today because I think I’ve mentioned other games around us. We all saw the game, but I don’t think I have to tell you that today. We know that the team around you has a moment like that and then you have to capitalize. We didn’t do it at other times this season. “
“All I wanted to do was make sure we did our job tonight. I felt that tonight was upon us. We were against a team that has just been relegated. With all due respect, here at home, if we do our work at home, we get three points and we did it. ”
– Frank Lampard, source: Soccer, London.
Our focus is now heading to the FA Cup semi-final against Manchester United this Sunday at Wembley.
