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Mourinho will inspire Tottenham players, claims Lampard

Frank Lampard has credited Jose Mourinho as the manager who gave him self-confidence, adding the ex-Chelsea boss can turn Tottenham's players into winners.

By Patric Ridge
Chelsea - cropped

London, Nov. 23: Frank Lampard has credited Jose Mourinho as the manager who made him believe in himself, adding the former Chelsea boss can inspire Tottenham's players to become winners.

Mourinho was appointed as Spurs manager on Wednesday, 11 hours after the club announced the departure of Mauricio Pochettino following a dismal start to the Premier League season.

Lampard played under Mourinho across two separate spells at Chelsea, winning the Premier League in back-to-back campaigns between 2004 and 2006.

Asked what Mourinho will bring to Tottenham's dressing room, Chelsea head coach Lampard cited the Portuguese's ability to instill self-belief in his squads, which he feels will be key to transforming Spurs' fortunes.

"What Jose did when he came to the club was give me a real self-confidence. He has a lot of that himself, we all see that, but he's got a really good way of transmitting that to the players," Lampard told a news conference.

"He took me as a bit of a project because I think I was slightly within myself at that point in terms of how I believe in myself, and he gave me great encouragement and bonded a real team spirit at the club where we hadn't won anything and he wanted to make us winners and we really bought into that.

"I'm sure it's a different situation now but that was my experience of it. He will look to inspire the players that he works with now as we all do. That's part of his job, out on the training pitch and then some of it is how much you can do man-to-man."

Lampard left Chelsea in 2014, joining Manchester City - who the Blues face on Saturday - for a season before heading to MLS club New York City.

The midfielder scored a late equaliser in a 1-1 draw between City and Chelsea, with Mourinho subsequently claiming Lampard's "love story" with the Blues had ended.

"At the time I didn't feel it was quite right, I have to say that. Maybe directly after match can affect the comment," Lampard said when asked about Mourinho's comments.

"The bigger picture on that one is that I think the love story or not is always decided by the fans and the club.

"I think it's proven now I'm here managing the club. I think a lot of people understood how I feel about Chelsea, always did, always will do, regardless of the year at City. I think it was more a comment made with emotion.

"I think the reaction of me going to City, which is something I was concerned about after 13 years here, I wondered at 36 whether the year there was something I should take on because of what I feel about this club and then the professional side of it, the challenge of it and the period I had where I wasn't going to be playing before going to New York all came together and made me take a decision which was quite tough at the time."

Lampard, however, stated his time at City has proved a crucial experience.

"To have a year in Manchester, in terms of what I'm doing now, was perfect for me in terms of what I'm doing now because it opened my eyes to another club, another structure, another dressing room, another coaching philosophy," he said.

"It helped shape what came next. I can't look back on my career with any negative feelings, even about leaving Chelsea."

Story first published: Saturday, November 23, 2019, 9:59 [IST]
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