New Chelsea boss Frank Lampard has admitted that his managerial approach is influenced by former Blues boss Jose Mourinho. The 41-year-old was appointed as manager of the West London giants last week. His arrival has resulted in a state of euphoria among fans. Lampard is a Chelsea great, a clean-cut figure on and off the field and it will be hoped that he can successfully navigate the club next season amidst their two-window transfer ban.
“Even for good or bad, you take influence,” said Lampard as reported by The Mirror.
“And Jose Mourinho is an obvious case for me because he was the manager who dramatically changed my career.
“He brought success to Chelsea, but also for me, personally, because my game went up a few notches.
“It was mainly about mentality – it was his confidence in me. I was quite within myself when he came, my self-belief wasn’t where it should have been.
“And then in walks this fella with self-belief to burn and to pass on – and he did and I bought into it.
“He was certainly a great man-manager for me and also ahead of the game tactically. He made me think more than maybe I had done before he came.”
Mourinho is widely regarded as being the greatest Chelsea manager
Even though his two previous managerial spells with Chelsea ended bitterly, Mourinho is widely regarded as being the greatest manager to have been at the helm of the Stamford Bridge giants. The 56-year-old led the club to three Premier League titles, one FA Cup and three League Cups across his two spells as manager.
As a player, Lampard bore witness to both of Mourinho’s spells as manager of Chelsea so he will naturally be influenced by him the most. Whether the Englishman will be able to match Mourinho as a manager and navigate the club to trophies however remains to be seen.
Lampard started his managerial career last summer with Derby County. He attracted praise for his work with the Rams as he led them to the Championship playoffs before they lost the final against a more gifted Aston Villa side. Some critics of Lampard’s appointment have pointed to his lack of experience as a reason for why he is bound to fail. However, he spent thirteen years with the club as a player and will know it in and out better than most people. A lack of managerial experience also does not necessarily mean failure. Zinedine Zidane was relatively inexperienced as a manager when he initially took charge of Real Madrid but still managed to navigate Los Blancos to three successive Champions League titles.
