Frank Lampard is taking a bit of a beating right now in the media and social media worlds, and that’s due to what we’ve seen Chelsea become under Thomas Tuchel. The new boss is definitely not the same as the old boss, as the second Chelsea manager this season is getting much more, out of the same roster, than Lampard did.
However, you have to give him some credit for midfielder Mason Mount, who has developed into one of the side’s best/overall most important players. Mount developed at Derby County under Lampard in the Championship and then came up to Chelsea with him when the club’s all-time leading scorer assumed the managerial position.
Is there anything better than watching Mason Mount play football?
— Josh Hart (@joshhart) May 1, 2021
(As you can see above, New Orleans Pelicans guard Josh Hart is a massive Mason Mount fan)
Mount helped set up one of Kai Havertz’s two goals on Saturday in the 2-0 win over Fulham. However, there is a bit of a concern now as he landed hard, and exited early from the match.
Tuchel is hopeful that nothing is wrong with Mount, and he insinuated that the Englishman’s removal (76′, with Tammy Abraham subbed on in his place) was more or less precautionary.
“I saw him holding his back slightly, so we didn’t want to take any risks but I have no other information on that.”
We’ll see what happens as the week progresses and the Champions League semifinal second leg approaches. Tuchel also described Mason Mount as “the full package.” Quite the compliment!
“It’s a pleasure to have him, be at his side and guide him and support him,” the German said.
“It’s impressive — He’s not affected by all the praise. This is maybe the most important part. He seems to be a guy who likes the sport and feels an obligation to make the most out of it. He wants it absolutely badly, so it’s a top mix.”
“He has the full package, mentally, in terms of talent and physically and the most important part is his character, he has his feet on the ground and he’s a nice guy. He comes to Cobham every day to learn something new and have new experiences.
“He is the guy who can recover very fast, he’s a very physical player and is fully adapted to Premier League football. He has big self-confidence in a very, very positive way.”
Chelsea head into the second leg of their UEFA Champions League semifinal knotted up 1-1 with Real Madrid, but they do have an away goal.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank, partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated, Chicago Tribune and SB Nation. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram.