The former Blues star claims any manager would rather work for a chairman prepared to spend big than one who demands little from them
Frank Lampard will be embracing the pressure that a £200 million ($264m) spend has delivered at Chelsea, claims Gus Poyet, with all managers looking to work with “better players”.
The Blues boss was freed to oversee an elaborate spending spree in the last transfer window.
Roman Abramovich dusted off the chequebook at Stamford Bridge and set about funding moves that have allowed big-money additions to be made across the field in west London.
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Chelsea bolstered their ranks from back to front, with the likes of Edouard Mendy, Thiago Silva, Ben Chilwell, Kai Havertz, Hakim Ziyech and Timo Werner drafted into an ambitious squad.
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Unsurprisingly, it took a few weeks for a new-look side to click.
The Blues were, however, to start building momentum prior to the November international break and are considered to be serious contenders for the Premier League title in 2020-21.
Lampard is the man being charged with the task of delivering on that expectation, but Poyet believes an iconic figure at the Bridge will be welcoming the opportunity to compete for major honours.
The former Chelsea midfielder told the Daily Mail: “I like what Frank did last season without the chance to sign players.
“He used young players who go through these adrenaline periods of doing brilliantly and then not so well.
“Expectations have changed now because Chelsea spent big money in the summer. Frank has embraced that, no more transition period.
“Is it more pressure? Give me pressure with better players any day. I’d always prefer a chairman who spends £200 million.”
While Lampard‘s standing as a club legend at Chelsea should see him given time to get things right, Poyet concedes that patience is a rare commodity in modern football and that change is seemingly never too far away in any given dugout.
The Uruguayan, who has taken in spells at Brighton and Bordeaux in his managerial career, added: “That’s football, that’s society. We increase dramatically the bad things and diminish the good.
“I saw when [Jose] Mourinho replaced Mauricio Pochettino [at Tottenham], it was because the board wanted to win trophies. But then they need to remember [Juande] Ramos who did win a trophy. It is a contradiction.”
