Willian, Giroud Were Not Fit To Face Man Utd – Lampard

Chelsea manager, Frank Lampard has replied Jose Mourinho’s criticism of his team selection against Manchester United by saying he does not care about what pundits have to say.

Mourinho said Lampard could’ve picked a team with more “know how” rather than youngsters, Mason Mount and Tammy Abraham for the game vs Manchester United.

But Lampard has said players like Kante, Willian and Giroud were not available to start.

His words, “I can’t drag people out of the medical room, whether they’re experienced or not,” said Lampard after his first competitive game as Chelsea boss.

“The players we played today, and on the bench, are the players we have. We were clearly the better team for 45 or even 60 minutes but we made individual errors that led to four goals from five shots. That’s the harsh reality.

“I don’t have to be too concerned about what anyone else says — the pundits — but what is clear is the squad is the squad we’ve got and I believe in it.

“Had we gone in at half-time 2-1 or 3-1 up, which we should have done, the game would have been completely different.”

Mourinho had this to say, “My feeling is that today they had a possibility to play with more know-how.”

“It’s the first match at home, the first match of the season, people are excited, the stadium is on fire waiting for something positive.

“A little bit of experience [from Chelsea] would fit well with the team. You look to the performance of Mason Mount, the performance of Tammy Abraham, you look to the performance even of [Andreas] Christensen and for matches of this dimension you need a little bit more.”