Chelsea manager Frank Lampard has hailed the influence of Carlo Ancelotti on his career ahead of their Premier League reunion on Saturday.
Ancelotti, now in charge of Everton, guided Chelsea to the Premier League and FA Cup double in the 2009-10 season with Lampard one of the mainstays of his midfield. And he was quick to praise the veteran Italian coach going into the match at Goodison Park.
"I was heavily influenced by him as a player and a man. He's right at the top of managers I worked with," Lampard said. "He's had huge success at various clubs. He was a great coach, a great man and I look forward to seeing him."
Everton, beaten 4-0 by Lampard's side in their last meeting, made a solid start to the current season and led the table before a dip in form saw them slide to ninth place with 17 points from 11 games, six places and five points behind Chelsea.
"The Premier League is unforgiving. They've had injuries. It doesn't change my thoughts on how to approach playing them," Lampard, whose side are also through to the Champions League last-16, said. "We're happy where we are but there's a long way to go. Words aren't important at this point.
"It was important for us to win our Champions league group and put that away until the new year. Our next four games show how challenging it is. It's important to focus and understand. We can't drop our standards."
Lampard added that Chelsea will be without injured wingers Hakim Ziyech (hamstring) and Callum Hudson-Odoi (thigh) for at least two weeks.
Lampard has admitted that trying to maximise Christian Pulisic's impact at the club remains a "work in progress".
Pulisic will be fit for Saturday, having shaken off his latest hamstring twinge earlier this week. The United States forward has avoided any injury in a clear relief to both player and manager at Stamford Bridge.
But Pulisic has suffered a clutch of hamstring issues, and Lampard admitted he, the player and the club are still working hard to find the right balance of work and rest to help the 22-year-old thrive in west London.
____________________________________________________________________
Player ratings: Chelsea 3 Leeds 1
-
CHELSEA RATINGS: Edouard Mendy 6 – Was partially at fault for Leeds’ opener. He came off his line when he might have been better off not committing, and he was rounded by Bamford. Otherwise pretty solid. EPA -
Reece James 7 – Was effective at both ends of the pitch. He delivered a scintillating cross for Giroud to volley home the equaliser, and he was also strong in the air and in the challenge in defence. AFP -
Kurt Zouma 7 – if Mendy was at fault for the Leeds goal then it could be argued Zouma was too. His hesitation may have caused a bit of confusion. However, he more than made up for it by heading home the winner. Reuters -
Thiago Silva 7 – Another classy performance. Was solid at the back and effortless in possession. At one stage, he played a delightful and precise volleyed pass. On another, he made a key block to deny Raphinha. AFP -
Ben Chilwell 6 – Showed his propensity for getting forward but was not as his best. Chilwell definitely helps Chelsea attack with pace, but his passing on this occasion was sometimes wayward. AFP -
Kai Havertz 5 – A poor first half, but Havertz improved in the second and he almost scored with a header, but he sent his effort over when a deft touch probably would have been enough. Overall: gave the ball away too easily too often. EPA -
N’Golo Kante 8 – Back to his best sat in front of the back four. Snuffed out attacks, intercepted passes and quickly started attacks by playing the simple ball. Reuters -
Mason Mount 8 – Another passionate and energetic performance from the attacking midfielder. Never stopped running, was strong in the challenge too, and contributed a number of key passes, including the cross for Zouma’s winner. AFP -
Hakim Ziyech 6 – Came close to scoring in the first minute when he controlled Thiago Silva’s long pass before driving a low shot straight at Keisler. Was involved in the first goal but limped off soon after. EPA -
Olivier Giroud 8 – Came close on several occasions before hitting his fifth goal in two games thanks to his neat movement and deadly finish. Did a lot of work off the ball and certainly boosted his chances of starting more regularly. Reuters -
Timo Werner 6 – A mixed game. He hit the crossbar when it seemed impossible to miss. He played on the right, and struggled, but still manage to carve out three further goalscoring chances and crossed for Christian Pulisic to tap home at the death. EPA -
SUB: Christian Pulisic (Ziyech) 7 – Looked bright when he came on and his positive runs caused Leeds a number of problems. Capped a fine performance with a goal late on. Reuters -
SUB: Tammy Abraham (Giroud) N/A – didn’t do a lot wrong when he came on but wasn’t as effective as Giroud when it came to disrupting the Leeds defence. Reuters -
Mateo Kovacic (Havertz) 6 – Came on with 23 minutes to go and looked tidy in possession when he had the ball. Reuters -
LEEDS UNITED RATINGS: Illan Meslier 6 – The youngster could do little to keep out Giroud’s equaliser or Zouma’s winner. He got lucky in the first half when a poor pass put Luke Ayling under pressure. He made up for it with a superb triple save in the second half. AFP -
Luke Ayling 6 – A fabulous attacking presence for Leeds who looked a danger when striding forward on the overlap. Had his hands full when battling with Timo Werner throughout, but an otherwise solid performance. Reuters -
Robin Koch N/A – The defender had been short of match fitness coming into this game and the decision failed to pay off as he was replaced by Llorente in the opening 10 minutes. AFP -
Liam Cooper 5 – Looked like the weak link in the side. Gave the ball away on numerous occasions and was often out of position, like when Giroud equalised. Made some key interceptions, but not consistent enough. EPA -
Ezgan Alioski 5 – Substituted with 20 minutes left on the clock, he found it hard when facing Werner or Pulisic and offered very little at either end. Reuters -
Kalvin Phillips 7 – Another classy performance from the midfielder, who delivered the perfect pass to slice open Chelsea’s defence for Bamford’s goal. Enjoyed a tremendous battle with N’Golo Kante. Reuters -
Raphinha 6 – Leeds rarely threatened Mendy’s goal but Raphinha came close twice in a matter of seconds. His first effort was blocked by Thiago Silva, his second blazed over the bar. Found space hard to come by. EPA -
Mateusz Klich 5 – A key part of Bielsa’s system, he was snuffed out by the combination of Kante, Mount and Havertz in the Chelsea midfield. Reuters -
Stuart Dallas 5 – Dallas played both at the back and in midfield in different phases of the game but looked lost throughout. Like Klich, he struggled against Chelsea’s effective midfield. Reuters -
Jack Harrison 5 – A quiet game on the left-hand side, as Leeds’ main attacking play came on the other side.. Harrison’s crossing let him down when he did have the ball. AFP -
Patrick Bamford 6 – Gave Leeds the lead with a well taken goal. He managed to evade the oncoming Edouard Mendy to side foot into an empty net but was subsequently well marshalled by Silva and Zouma thereafter. EPA -
SUB: Diego Llorente (Koch) 6 – Did OK when he came on, though almost gave the ball away when he miskicked an attempted clearance across the face of his own area. EPA -
SUB: Rodrigo (Alioski) 7 – Gave Leeds a bit more of an attacking presence when he came on and though he failed to create any goalscoring chances, he boosted his chances of starting next time around. EPA -
SUB: Ian Poveda-Ocampo (Harrison) 6 – Looked bright on the right-hand side and had calls for a penalty when he was clipped – but didn’t go down – inside the penalty area. AFP
____________________________________________________________________
"Christian Pulisic had a tiny bit of awareness off the back of the Leeds game on one of his hamstrings, but he's training normally," said Lampard.
"Christian is a work in progress. I don't want to call this an injury he had in midweek. If the game had been a different type of game then maybe I would have used him.
"We know his abilities, that's very clear, he showed them when he came on against Leeds last week.
"I just have to find the right way to get the best out of him regularly and consistently."
Chelsea sit third in the Premier League ahead of the weekend's fixtures, having composed a nine-match unbeaten run since their sole defeat of the campaign, the 2-0 home loss to Liverpool. They defeated Leeds 3-1 at Stamford Bridge last weekend
After a flying start to the new campaign, Everton have lost four of their last six games and drew 1-1 with Burnley in their last match.
____________________________________________________________________
