The last time Chelsea faced Manchester United in the Premier League, manager Frank Lampard left convinced his side would make the top-four. Never mind he’d just watched his team thrashed 4-0.
It was quite a baptism of fire for Lampard. Opening day of the season, Old Trafford, his first game as Chelsea boss — the club where he is idolised.
‘I saw enough to suggest we could make the top-four,’ said Lampard. ‘I saw it again in the Super Cup against Liverpool. I said to the players after both games I felt we have enough here to have a successful season.
‘So I didn’t find it a seminal moment or think “wow”, we’ve lost 4-0. It didn’t feel nice on the day and it would be great to correct it tomorrow.’
Even with one of the youngest squads in the Premier League, Chelsea sit fourth, they face Liverpool in the FA Cup fifth-round and are gearing up for a Champions League last 16 clash against Bayern Munich.
Lampard isn’t satisfied, of course. The ultimate test of his first season in charge at Stamford Bridge will come at the end of the season. At least as player, Lampard was used to finishing the job.
In the race for fourth place, victory on Monday night will extend Chelsea’s lead over United to nine points — surely an insurmountable lead to scale for Ole Gunnar Solsjkaer’s team.
Lampard, though, won’t be taking anything for granted.
‘Not at nine points, not with the amount of points left to play for and the way the Premier League is,’ Lampard said.
‘The landscape is tougher in terms of picking up points, as you can see from the points totals in and around ourselves.
‘This year it looks a lot different with points being taken off different teams. It’s a changing of the Premier League, slightly. Teams now can invest a lot of money. You can get promoted to the Premier League, spend a £100million and it doesn’t guarantee you success.
‘That’s the kind of challenging times that we’re talking about. Challenge is a good thing.’