Under-fire Chelsea manager Frank Lampard has admitted his side have "lost some of the basics" as their difficult run of form continues.
Lampard has seen his position called into question amid Chelsea's slump, as the Blues have dropped to ninth in the Premier League table after losing five of their last eight league matches.
Speaking ahead of Chelsea's FA Cup match against Luton Town on Sunday, Lampard said that although his team's identity hasn't changed, the lack of results means they must get back to basics.
“It’s interesting, because when you’re playing well and winning, your identity is really clear and it’s something you want to shout from the rooftops," Lampard said.
“And when you’re not playing well, people question your identity, especially when you’re a relatively new manager.
“So it’s important that I am the one who holds that dear and says, ‘Hey, lads, the things that we were doing well, the identity we had that was winning games for us, it has not changed, but we have to go back to something because we have lost some of the basics.'"
Chelsea's most recent defeat came in a 2-0 defeat to Leicester City on Tuesday, and Lampard confessed he is hoping to instil the same attitude in his side as Leicester appear to have based on a post-game interview with star midfielder James Maddison.
“I thought it was a really important thing when I listened to James Maddison speaking after the Leicester game and he spoke about Brendan Rodgers, a coach I have a lot of admiration for," Lampard said.
“It was the message that, ‘If you don’t run, you don’t play.'
“If I want to start my identity, that’s how I start it. From the minute I came into this club it was, ‘Can we run and be really good and effective off the ball and on the ball? Can we have energy in the team?’
“That’s the first thing I want to see and it’s something we’ve definitely dropped off on, there’s no doubt about that.”
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Though Lampard is in a difficult moment, he also took a chance to offer some perspective. As a high-paid coach of a massive football club, Lampard said he would never face the same struggles so many are experiencing amid the coronavirus pandemic.
"It’s a very important point. I’ve mentioned before that I’m the manager of Chelsea and a Chelsea fan, and who wouldn’t get excited about that prospect?" Lampard said.
“So I’m doing that in these tough times and can come to work and put on this tracksuit and feel proud to wear it, whilst a lot of people are suffering up and down the country, around the world, people have been dying, daily the numbers go up.
“And when I see that and feel that, we all hopefully have compassion to look round clearly and see that people are losing their jobs. People are struggling with their livelihoods and that’s massive perspective to the so-called pressures or struggles.
“I genuinely mean that. I want to be a success, so when we go through a run of games and we don’t win, I look for the solutions and answers, and I’ll fight for them.
“And then I expect that from the players on the pitch. But that’s not the worst pressure, that’s a good pressure, I enjoy doing that with my life and the perspective of what is going on in the world is a huge one.”
