Lampard wants later start for his Blues players
CHELSEA manager Frank Lampard says starting the new Premier League season on September 12 is too early and his players run the risk of sustaining injuries given the short turnaround between campaigns.
Chelsea trail Bayern Munich 3-0 heading into the second leg of their Champions League last 16 tie on Saturday and even if they fail to overcome the deficit, Lampard’s side will have little over a month to recover before the new season begins.
“I am guessing we will be told when we start and that will be dependent on how we go against Bayern,” Lampard told British media on Sunday.
“It is not ideal if we carry on against Bayern – the players need to be given a break to play at the level and the quality product that the Premier League is.
“Even in a worst-case scenario, we don’t go through against Bayern, the 12th feels too early for me for the players to start playing again.”
Cesar Azpilicueta, Christian Pulisic and Pedro picked up injuries during Chelsea’s 2-1 defeat by Arsenal in the FA Cup final on Saturday and Lampard fears other players could meet a similar fate.
“The players need a break. That is why we have pulled two hamstrings and had players pull out of the game before this. I would like to think the Premier League would look seriously at that,” he said.
Meanwhile, former Chelsea midfielder Eddie Newton has been appointed the permanent manager of Trabzonspor after he guided them to the Turkish Cup title as caretaker, the Super Lig club said.
The 48-year-old had taken charge on an interim basis for Trabzonspor’s final two games of the season after the departure of Huseyin Cimsir and oversaw a 2-0 win over Alanyaspor in the Cup final to land the club’s first trophy in a decade.
Trabzonspor confirmed Newton’s appointment as their manager in a statement on Sunday but did not give details of the length of his contract.
Newton had told Sky Sports after Trabzonspor’s triumph that a lack of opportunities in England had prompted him to seek a job abroad.
“The fact is, I’ve moved to another country and it’s taken six months to become caretaker manager ... I’ve been working in football all my life so that’s why I felt there was more opportunity here, so I had to take the chance, basically.”
After nine years as a Chelsea player, Newton spent a further eight years as a coach in the club and was assistant to Italian Roberto Di Matteo when they claimed the Champions League and FA Cup titles in 2012.
He had reprised that role under Dutchman Guus Hiddink in 2015 and moved to Turkey in February this year to work as Cimsir’s assistant.
Trabzonspor finished second in the Super Lig behind Istanbul Basaksehir.
But the club lost their place in next season’s Champions League after the Court of Arbitration for Sport dismissed their appeal against a one-season ban imposed by Uefa.