Monday, 29 December 2008

Lampard: It's all to play for



Frank Lampard insists Chelsea have the fighting spirit required to mount a title challenge in the new year.
The London side drew three of their four games over the Christmas fortnight and head into 2009 three points behind Barclays Premier League pace-setters Liverpool.
Defending champions Manchester United will overhaul Chelsea if they win all three of their games in hand - making the Blues' trip to Old Trafford on January 11 a vital fixture.
Chelsea have dropped 11 points from their last available 21 but Lampard is confident they can rekindle the resilience that carried them to the title under Jose Mourinho in 2005 and 2006.
"There's three points in it and we've got a very good squad of players," said Lampard, after scoring both goals in Chelsea's 2-2 draw at Fulham yesterday.
"We have obviously lost a bit of ground now but there are big games coming up. We have Manchester United as our next game in the league so it's still all to play for.
"We will go to United wanting to win that game. If we can get real consistency going, we can win the league.
"You can only win titles with never-say-die in your team. That is what Chelsea are all about. We've had it for the last few years and we've still got it."
Lampard, sporting the captain's armband with John Terry suspended, embodied that attitude at Craven Cottage where he was Chelsea's outstanding player.
"Frank is a man who never accepts defeat," said Chelsea manager Luiz Felipe Scolari.
"He scored two goals again and he works more chances than any other player. He played very, very well."
Unfortunately for Scolari the same attention to detail was not evident at the back as Lampard's best efforts were undone by poor set-piece defending.
Clint Dempsey, who had put Fulham ahead after Chelsea failed to clear a Simon Davies free-kick, was left unmarked to score the last minute equaliser.
"Without a doubt we should have won the game," Lampard added.
"We managed to get our nose in front and we felt comfortable in the game. Then we managed to get done on the set pieces and obviously there's frustration in the dressing room after the game.
"We dropped points against Fulham so Manchester United have a chance to go above us if they win all of their games in hand so that brings a lot of importance."
Terry's suspension will be over after the FA Cup third round tie against Southend on Saturday and he will be available for the United game.

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