The Blues icon is offering his expertise as the Spaniard’s future as the club’s first choice shot-stopper continues to be called into question
Frank Lampard has revealed that fellow club legend player Petr Cech is getting involved in goalkeeping training sessions amid a fight for the No.1 spot at Chelsea.
Upon retirement from playing football after a spell at Arsenal, Chelsea’s former goalkeeper returned to the club as a technical and performance advisor.
That role has seen Cech get involved in advising on transfers at Stamford Bridge, with the latest deal to be completed that of Senegal international Edouard Mendy in a £22m ($27m) deal from Rennes.
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His arrival comes after yet another Kepa Arrizabalaga howler, as concerns continue grow over the latter’s form.
Having been pictured training with the shot-stoppers, Lampard explained how Cech is getting more involved in a three-way battle for the No.1 spot – with Willy Caballero also in the mix and possibly set to start against West Brom.
“Petr came to me and talked about it before he started training at first,” the manager said. “We were sort of suffering with the squad and numbers [being so high] and now Petr is training very regularly with the group. That can change at any time.
“It’s not something I have a problem with in any way and that communication is always really good. It’s something I like. We are a tight-knit family here at Chelsea. It’s important that we’ve promoted that a lot.
“That was one of the things when I came back to the club. It’s not like I’m going to put my boots on and take part every day, but what we’re trying to do is make sure that the group is together.
“Petr has his job but he’s also at times helping with the goalkeepers. Why would you not tap into having the best goalkeeper in the world, which he was for a long time, to pass on that knowledge?
“With Petr, he had so much to give on that side of things. His daily job here is to be a technical advisor and he has been a great help to me on that front. That’s been brilliant for me being back at the club to have that.
“Having Petr train with the goalkeepers and bring his experience is a great thing. He still has great quality as he retired pretty young. He’s training and keeping fit, which I think is healthy for him and the goalkeepers in the squad.”
The £72m ($92m) signing from Athletic Club has struggled since Lampard came in but his record price tag has put off potential suitors.
Valencia and Sevilla have already been put off by Kepa’s wage demands but Lampard isn’t refusing to rule out a loan move before the transfer deadline passes on 5 October.
“There’s no clarity on that one yet about what will happen and I’m not going to speak about the maybes or what might happen in the future,” he added as he was preparing to talk to both Kepa and Caballero about new signing Mendy.
“I think the most important thing now is the game this weekend, which Mendy won’t be involved in. I will have conversations with all the goalkeepers and be very open about it and we’ll see the way to move forward.”
