One highlight of the season under Frank Lampard, has been the fact that the Chelsea boss Frank Lampard, has given a number of playing opportunities to the Blues academy youngsters.
The Chelsea youngsters have for the first time had a passage into the first team from the academy, with the likes of Tammy Abraham, Mason Mount, Fikayo Tomori, Callum Hudson-Odoi, Reece James and Billy Gilmour all having a chance in the team.
Lampard has revealed that his assistant Jody Morris, as well as the team of Joe Edwards, Jim Fraser and Neil Bath, have all played a role in helping him make the right decisions in selecting the youngsters who are ready to make the step up.
He told the official Chelsea website: “It was always going to be a priority and the relationships were already there. Joe [Edwards] and Jody [Morris] knew all the players, I knew the more prominent ones, and we all knew Neil Bath and Jim Fraser [from the Academy] well. It just had to be reconnected because it hadn’t been as connected in recent years.
“I wanted to know all the players, the names of the ones who were training well and deserved a chance. It’s easy to pluck a Billy Gilmour, but it’s also a case of hearing that, say, Henry Lawrence is training well – then get him over, get him training with us.
“All those little details are important and it’s brilliant, it’s what it’s all about – it shouldn’t be any other way.
“I’m certainly excited about the squad we’ve got, with the young players and if we can get a few additions for areas I feel we need. We didn’t bring in anyone in January, it didn’t work out to be right for us at the time, and last summer we couldn’t bring anyone in, so those windows are gone and we haven’t changed. So I am excited about the squad we’ve got, if we can freshen up in the right areas – we all know that.”