Chelsea: Frank Lampard took the right parts of Jose Mourinho’s comments

It is easy to fall into the trap of comparing Frank Lampard to his former Chelsea managers. He is his own manager and able to sort through the noise.

Jose Mourinho spent the weekend on Sky Sports giving commentary on his two former teams: Chelsea and Manchester United. Mourinho is always enjoyable to listen to and based on some of his punditry, it is shocking that he did not find a job this season.

That is not to say all of his punditry is correct however. For whatever else Mourinho is, he is a human with all the attached faults. Primarily, his commentary came into two main tent poles following the match. The first was about Chelsea’s compactness or lack thereof and the second was about the youth versus experience.

Many try to shoehorn Frank Lampard’s ideas into the camp of Mourinho, or Carlo Ancelotti, or whoever else he crossed paths with. But Lampard is able to sort through the noise to be his own manager. He followed the correct Mourinho comments while standing firm on the incorrect.

Against Manchester United, Chelsea started well but they had little overall control of the match. The pressing was aggressive and it forced United onto their heels early but it was not overly organized. That was showcased plenty enough when the centerbacks would abandon the center to press. Eventually, United got their bearings as they exploited the space Chelsea gave up.

The adjustments against Liverpool were small but notable. Rather than sticking with the 4-2-3-1, Lampard opted for more of a 4-1-4-1 or 4-3-3. The press went from constant to more controlled. Rather than press at every single moment, Chelsea would focus on long balls, loose passes, and passes received with a player on the blindside. The players not involved in the press went right into the defensive shape which prevented many of the counters United were able to have when everyone moved up.

There was also more midfield rotation to cover rather than press. If Mateo Kovacic or N’Golo Kante pressed, Jorginho and the opposite player would slide over to form something not unlike the pivot. This gave Chelsea another safety net for when the press failed. The compactness Mourinho commented on in the United aftermath was largely achieved without jeopardizing Lampard’s main principles.

But Mourinho was completely wrong to blame younger players for United. Yes, experience is important in matches like that, but the youth were not to blame for the United loss. Lampard was taken aback, and rightly so, when confronted by the comments after that match.

But Lampard knows that Mourinho is not right all the time and he stuck by his players. No, Tammy Abraham and Mason Mount did not start. But with the game tied, very much in the balance, Lampard opted to bring on not Michy Batshuayi or Ross Barkley first, but Abraham and Mount.

Again, they did not look out of place against Liverpool. Mount was unlucky to see the offside flag take a goal from him but overall he was effective. Abraham is still a striker who works hard and does most things right but he cannot find the back of the net. He may have missed his penalty, but Lampard still backs him and he has plenty of reason to yet. Abraham has yet to fully show what he can offer, but he is close.

Lampard is not Mourinho and should not try to be. Mourinho’s comments may have been right for him, but not for Lampard. What is important is that Lampard was able to sort through that and find what worked for him. Lampard is very much his own manager and on that Mourinho would surely be proud.