After completing his last game in the Blues dugout, Frank Lampard gave some insight into the challenges that await the incoming Chelsea manager.
Frank Lampard has identified three major challenges that await incoming Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino.
These are trimming down a bloated squad, enhancing the fitness levels of the retained players, and fostering a relentless, winning mindset within the group.
According to Sky Sports, Pochettino has signed a contract with Chelsea. The Blues could unveil the former Tottenham and Paris Saint-Germain boss as their newest manager soon; especially as the season is now over.
“I’m a big fan of Pochettino as a manager, I think he’s a very good manager,” Lampard said after Sunday’s final-day draw against Newcastle. “But it’s not about which individual it might be, it’s about getting the right high level of manager.
“Pochettino’s history tells you he works at clubs of this sort of level. Letting him get to work with the players he creates a solid identity in a team that can win more games. Those things aren’t always overnight things, so we have to be careful with expectations a little bit.”
‘Standards collectively have dropped’
Sunday’s 1-1 draw against Newcastle ended a miserable season at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea ended up 12th in the Premier League table with 44 points from 38 games. It was their worst-ever points tally in the English league.
The west London club recorded just one win in Lampard’s 11 games since the Englishman’s appointment as interim manager in April, losing eight and drawing twice.
“There’s a lot of work to be done,” Lampard continued.
“That’s my synopsis after six weeks, the basics that I keep talking about – standards are so relevant to this club at the minute. Standards collectively have dropped. Standards as a collective for a club like Chelsea have to be at the maximum, or you won’t be physically competitive enough, or you won’t be able to play at a high level, high speed the Premier League demands.
“If you’re not together in the dressing room and vocal in the dressing room, and driving each other and competitive because ‘I want your place and you want mine’… Every top team has to have that. When I came in, very quickly I could see that wasn’t there enough. Of course, a very good manager can help that but everyone has to take responsibility.”
As for what else is needed, Lampard added: “The next manager will need a pre-season. We’re not physically competitive enough, that’s a strong opinion I have.
“The squad has been too big. That has been the biggest challenge, coming in to work with players who for whatever reason are disillusioned. Those situations can be sorted out now and they need to be.”
“File:Franktraining2.jpg” by Brian Minkoff London-Pixels is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
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