Frank Lampard insists he's relishing the current challenge at Chelsea after the club was slammed by Micah Richards.
Since returning to Stamford Bridge as interim manager, Lampard has lost all five league and cup fixtures, and faces another acid test this Tuesday when the Blues visit title-chasing Arsenal. Their struggles have come amid reports that a deal has been agreed with Mauricio Pochetinno to take the reins next season.
But Sky Sports pundit Richards is seemingly fed up of hearing about mitigating circumstances. The former Man City man has argued it's time for the current crop to stand up and be counted at the Emirates, irrespective of the mounting criticism over club structure and transfer policies.
Richards said: "Chelsea's situation is really starting to frustrate me. I have heard so many complaints about the manager, the owner, about not having a striker. Enough! Sometimes, as a player, it becomes about personal pride and putting things right yourself.
"They have got an outstanding chance to answer their critics at Arsenal tomorrow. If I was in that group now, I would be desperate for the next game to put things right. I hope they are all feeling the same."
And in his pre-match press conference on Monday, Lampard himself insisted he was still enthused about the prospect of turning things around before the season is out. “My eyes were open when I came into this job," he said. "I’m too experienced in football as a player and now as a coach to understand that things don’t necessarily change overnight in terms of results and we’ve seen that."
“Our job is to work on performances and mentality of the group in training to try and bring back a good feeling. That only comes with hard work. I enjoy that challenge and I was very aware of it coming in.
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"I’m very proud to manage the club. I love being here and I enjoy doing my job. The reality in football is your career will not always be full of success. People will always remember the success, but part of the job is the tougher moments, whether you’re a manager or a player."
Admitting his side were "not in a great moment," Lampard also argued that all clubs, even those at the top, have to endure fluctuating fortunes. “It can be pretty normal, if you look at the history of all of the top clubs in the league, (there are) moments of tough periods.
"Our opponents (on Tuesday) are a good example of that. They want to be challenging for Premier League and they are again now and it’s been a while for them.
“I think we have to put perspective on it and understand that we’ve got to work on all aspects of the club to get back the feeling and position of where we want to be. It’s not a given in this league and there’s a lot of work to do.”
