https://www.chelseafc.com/en/news/2020/07/26/
frank-lampard-draws-parallels-with-2003-as-final-day-decider-loo
Lampard draws parallels with 2003 as final-day decider looms
26 Jul 2020
'We're not quite in that situation this time but we have an opportunity to
get a position that maybe people didn't expect us to be in...'
https://i.imgur.com/ZG8VEyo.jpg
There is not as much on the line today as the final day of the 2002/03
Premier League season, when Chelsea faced Liverpool in a draw-or-bust
clash for Champions League qualification which had significant
consequences for the financial health of the football club, though Frank
Lampard can draw some parallels with the tension of that day 17 years ago
as he prepares his Blues side to face a final-day decider of their own
this afternoon.
The Blues host Wolverhampton Wanderers at Stamford Bridge with our
top-four fate in their own hands; avoid defeat against the Midlanders and
a place at the top table of European competition next season will be ours.
We have an insurance policy too in that a Manchester United win at
Leicester City will also secure a finish in the top four for Lampard's
side, though the boss is not considering that possibility as he seeks the
three points that would complete the delayed and doubted objective of
Champions League qualification.
Premier League 2019/2020
POS TEAM P W D L gF gA gD PTS
====================================================================
1 Liverpool 37 31 3 3 82 32 50 96
2 Manchester City 37 25 3 9 97 35 62 78
3 Manchester United 37 17 12 8 64 36 28 63
4 Chelsea 37 19 6 12 67 54 13 63
5 Leicester City 37 18 8 11 67 39 28 62
The stakes were undoubtedly even higher back in 2003 as Lampard the player
looked to help Chelsea back into the Champions League for the first time
in four years. Back then, it wasn't just competing against the European
elite on the line. The club's finances were in a bad position and the
injection of Champions League revenue was essential.
The players were gathered for a pre-match meeting with the then-chief
executive Trevor Birch, who explained to them the significance of the game
on the club's finances and future. A motivational talk from the military
was also arranged to eke out even more from the team ahead of such a
crunch clash.
Lampard, aged 24 at the time, recalls it being the most high-pressure
moment of his career up to that point, perhaps a feeling his young players
can relate to in the modern day.
'It was the first time that I had felt tension to that level because of
what was at stake,' he remembers. 'It was made very clear to us at the
club that if we didn't qualify for the Champions League then the club
would have gone in a very different direction so I remember the build-up
and I remember the feeling.
https://i.imgur.com/xsWTnQr.jpg
Beating Liverpool in 2003 was as big a result in the boardroom as it was
on the field
'It was pretty shocking because in a footballer's life you strive for
success but you're also very aware that we're lucky to do the things that
we do and play for a club like Chelsea.
'We were all enjoying it and we felt very proud to do so but then when you
hear that one game could determine if the club goes out of business or
into administration or whatever it was at the time, it was a huge deal. I
was loving playing for Chelsea so the idea that it might turn on one game
was very hard-hitting.'
Lampard admits the talk from a member of the military before the game was
quite impactful and we can look back now, almost two decades later, with
fondness because of the result and the way things have turned out since.
'It was quite inspiring and the story ended well because we managed to get
the result that we needed,' he continues. 'I remember we had an army
general come to the hotel and speak to us in a motivational talk, which
was actually really good, and then we went out and produced.
'It was a huge day for Chelsea Football Club as a whole and something
really interesting to be part of - one of the big experiences of my life
because of what it meant going forward.'
That sliding doors moment will remain a defining chapter in Chelsea
history, leading to the new ownership of Roman Abramovich that summer and
the subsequent unprecedented level of on-field success and off-field
investment in infrastructure throughout the club.
Lampard does not believe we are at the same juncture now but he does
acknowledge the stakes are high.
'I'm not sure we should relate that feeling to now at Chelsea,' he says.
'That was a huge moment but now we're in a different place. If we make it
into the Champions League, it is financially a big deal for us but I still
think we are a club that will look to push on next year and onwards.
The boss has no plans to bring in special motivational speakers today and
admits that there is a fine balance to strike between inspiring and
paralysing a group of players ahead of such a big test.
'That's the balance you strive for and we all have our own ways of doing
it,' he explains. 'My experience is that it has to feel very real and the
right moment. If you try too hard to over-play something or over-motivate
and you go completely out of the box, you have to be quite careful.
'It was a very good tool at the time to have the Army general and when we
played in the Champions League final with [Roberto] Di Matteo we had
videos of our children saying good luck, which was a completely different
tone so it just shows you the spectrum and how it can work.
https://i.imgur.com/5lR6m1Q.jpg
Frank will be hoping for a similar performance and result to that 5-2 win
at Molineux later today at the Bridge
'We're not quite in that situation this time - the club was on the line in
2003 and the Champions League final was a huge moment. Now we're in a
moment where at the end of our season we have an opportunity to get a
position that maybe people didn't expect us to be in.
'It's not the ultimate achievement but it would be some sort of
achievement so I'll let the players know that in very straight terms. They
have to feel it, that's the most important thing.'