What's the story?
Chelsea shot-stopper Willy Caballero has lavished praise on gaffer Frank Lampard, claiming that the former Blues midfielder always had a leadership edge within himself. The veteran also stated that the entire camp is excited to work under him, as he has made significant notice of what it means to play for Chelsea.
In case you didn't know...
After weeks of speculation, Frank Lampard finally ascended the throne at Chelsea, succeeding Maurizio Sarri as the new manager. His team are up and running ahead of the season, having completed a week's training and plied their trade against Bohemians FC in Ireland.
Lampard is loved all across West London, and many Chelsea stars have already conceded how impactful he has been in terms of injecting morale and the right culture among the players and the system.
Meanwhile, Caballero shared the dressing room with Lampard as well, when the two played for Manchester City.
The heart of the matter
Recalling his time with Chelsea's record goalscorer, he said:
"I played with Frank for a season at Man City and even then you could see that he had those leadership skills in his character. During my time at City, I often spoke with Pablo Zabaleta and we would say that English teams needed big players who have won a lot of things in their careers to become coaches here.
So I think it’s fantastic that Lampard is now our head coach, it’s fantastic for him and also for Chelsea. It’s been superb with Frank so far. The way he spoke to us on the first day was amazing and he’s been great so far."
Caballero further remarked:
"He told us how he wants us to play, his ideas, how he wants us to train and how much work we must put in to be successful. He explained what it means to play for Chelsea and we are all excited to work under him."
What's next?
Frank Lampard and co. will take on St. Patrick's Athletic in the second pre-season friendly later today.