Hazard’s Real bow
EX TEAM-MATE RIO SAYS FANS’ DEMANDS ARE SPOT-ON
REAL MADRID plan to unveil Eden Hazard in front of more than 70,000 fans – despite struggling to find him a shirt number.
Hazard is set to celebrate his £130million move from Chelsea with a grand unveiling at the Bernabeu at 6pm tomorrow, to maximise the chances of a record crowd.
But his favourite No.10 shirt is already taken by Ballon d’Or winner Luka Modric and Real are unwilling to make the Croatian give it up.
Hazard is now expected to kick off next season in the famous No.7 shirt once worn by Cristiano Ronaldo. RIO FERDINAND agrees with the many Chelsea fans who see it as a no-brainer.
Frank Lampard as Maurizio Sarri’s successor. An emotional return for the legend and leading scorer who remains a darling of the club.
While critics and some at Stamford Bridge have concerns about Lampard’s managerial L-plates, Ferdinand points to the example of Pep Guardiola, who had just a year of coaching before taking over at Barcelona.
The former Spain midfielder was in charge of Barcelona B and led the second string to first place in the Tercera División Grupo 5 – part of the fourth tier of Spanish football – before succeeding Frank Rijkaard for the 2007-8 season.
Lampard steered an ailing Derby side to the brink of promotion to the Premier League, falling at the final hurdle in the Play-Off final against Aston Villa last month. Ferdinand said: “People talk about experience and what not, but what experience did Pep have when he went into the Barcelona first team?
“He trained the younger kids at the club. Would he wilt under the pressure when big players throw a wobbly in training? I don’t think he would.
“Frank knows Chelsea, he knows the players and the players will respect him.”
Ferdinand (right) was speaking after being appointed the FA’s Euro 2020 ambassador for a tournament set to be shared between 12 cities for the first time.
Wembley will be the venue for seven matches, including both semi-finals and the final.
Should Lampard get the Chelsea job, he could find himself priming the likes of Ross Barkley for a shot at glory with Gareth Southgate’s side. Former Juventus boss Max Allegri is a free agent and a more experienced option. But with a transfer ban looming and an unstinting commitment to young players from Lampard’s assistant – and former Blues Academy coach – Jody Morris, Ferdinand believes the Chelsea board must surely give Lampard the job.
He also feels the fact Mason Mount, 20, made 44 appearances on loan at the Rams and 22-year-old Liverpool midfielder Harry Wilson 49 demonstrates Lampard’s faith in youth.
“If Chelsea are going to get a ban transfer wise I don’t think they can look anywhere but Frank,” said Ferdinand, a former team-mate of Lampard’s with West Ham and England. “He and Jody know all the kids from 16 upwards.
“They know what they can all do. Chelsea have had the best young kids in the country for a while now, and none of them get in the first team.
“You would think they would like to change that. If they want to change that there’s no one but Frank.
“He’s someone who the young players are going to look at every day and say, ‘Wow, Frank is gonna play us’.
“He played Mason Mount at Derby every game when he was fit. He played Wilson every game he was fit.
“He trusts kids. His first season under mad pressure at Derby he played all the kids.
“So he invigorates not only the first team and the fans, but the kids coming through.
“At a time when managers are scared and under pressure not to play kids, I think it would be refreshing.”