Frank Lampard has said he was never going to waver in his belief of handing opportunities to Chelsea's academy players following the opening Premier League defeat to Manchester United.
Hamstrung by a transfer ban and the sale of star player Eden Hazard, Lampard has opted to place his trust in his squad's younger, more inexperienced players, led by striker Tammy Abraham, midfielder Mason Mount, and central defender Fikayo Tomori. Winger Callum Hudson-Odoi is also starting to feature more after returning from injury.
That trust in youth did not get off to the most auspicious of starts, with Chelsea losing 4-0 to Manchester United at Old Trafford on the first day of the league season, despite some encouraging attacking play from the visitors.
Since then, though, Chelsea have gone from strength to strength and are currently on a seven-match winning run in all competitions, which included an impressive 1-0 win at last season's Champions League semi-finalists Ajax.
Meanwhile, Abraham is the second-highest top goal-scorer in the Premier League with eight, Mount has contributed with goals and assists, and Tomori has seamlessly slotted into central defence.
"I joke a bit but there's a lot of noise, win, lose or draw, whatever 11 I pick," Lampard told reporters ahead of Chelsea's return to Old Trafford in the League Cup fourth round later on Wednesday.
"I set out this season to see what these young boys could do ... For me to have thrown that away after one game at Manchester United and a few opinions, that would have made me a bit of a flip-flopper."
Lampard said the key to his young players' good form is the continued trust he places in them, even when they make mistakes.
"(Making mistakes) is part of the process for a young player, isn't it?" Lampard said. "They have to feel you believe in them.
"I remember my managers giving me that sense they believed in me and stuck with me ... I think that's part of my job, to give all my players belief, but particularly the young ones."
