Chelsea have just lost to Manchester United at home in the Carabao Cup, and Frank Lampard is speaking to the media now.
The boss is quoted by Liam Twomey of the Athletic as comparing Manchester United’s tactics to Newcastle’s in our recent game – “five defenders with two defensive midfielders in front.”
Sure, it’s sour grapes, but he’s not wrong. Man U won that match through a penalty and a stunning free kick, and they were otherwise utterly toothless.
The problem for Frank, however, is that Chelsea weren’t much better. Michy Batshuayi’s goal was great, but it was from nowhere. In fact, in the first half we were dire, and in the second not much better. The fact that United sat deep and defended for most of the game shouldn’t surprise anyone, and it was our own players’ fault that they couldn’t break them down.
Next time, we’ve got to try and not give away two clumsy fouls for them to score from before we complain about how they play.