Chelsea was able to counter loss of Hazard to finish in top four, says Lampard

Frank Lampard, the Chelsea manager was aware that countering the loss of Eden Hazard was going to be difficult. However, he is delighted to have silenced those who were doubting the Blues.

The Belgian-forward headed through the exits at Stamford Bridge in the summer of 2019. Real Madrid acquired the services of the talismanic figure from this season.

A sizeable void was left behind in West London after the departure of Hazard. Lampard was handed an unenviable task when taking the reins in west London. But the Blues legend never shied away from the challenge. Lampard tried piecing together an exciting young squad that would ultimately deliver a top-four finish and FA Cup final appearance and he was successful in it.

Christian Pulisic has starred in the position that Hazard vacated. The United States international is already drawing obvious comparisons to a former fan favourite.

Lampard’s views about current Chelsea squad

“When you lose a player of the impact of Eden Hazard, we knew the players sometimes relied on his moments of magic to win us games,” the Chelsea boss said in the season review ‘Frank Lampard: Coming Home’. “It was a case for me of how can I fill that gap? I fully understand why some pundits didn’t give us a chance to come in the top four.”

Along with Pulisic, home-grown stars such as Mason Mount, Tammy Abraham and Reece James have also come to the fore-front.

Lampard added: “When you have players coming back from loans in the Championship who need to play 50 games, there will be difficult times.

“To be able to sustain Champions League football is a huge achievement for the club, but at no point I forced the academy boys to play. I felt if they were going to play for us they would have to do so on merit.”

Lampard’s youngsters have proved themselves to be more than capable of competing among the domestic and continental elites.

Lampard ready to bolster the Chelsea squad for upcoming challenges

“To be able to sustain Champions League football next year is huge for the club,” said Lampard. “It should give confidence now. Fourth was an achievement this year but I don’t want to be saying that next year.

“If we keep moving forward, we want to be saying, ‘how do we close the gap going forward?’ and that’s now our challenge.

 “Personally, I have a real desire to never settle on where we are today. I always want more. I don’t want to set huge markers on we are going to be, that would be the wrong approach.

“Let’s work daily to improve, close the gap above us and find more consistency in ourselves. Lots of things this year give us reason to believe. I have a very clear idea about where I see a need for improvement.”

Chelsea’s bid to scale even greater heights in the next campaign has seen them put deals in place for Hakim Ziyech and Timo Werner. Chelsea promises to bring more fresh faces as Lampard is finally freed to spend.

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