SILENT BUT DEADLY

Cole: Did I think back as team-mates that Frank would make a boss? No.. he was a quiet leader unlike Drogba, JT or Ballack. But now he’s so clever with words.. Lamps CAN turn Chelsea into champs

JOE COLE was not always convinced Frank Lampard would become a manager – but now believes eves he can win the title. .

Cole shared a dressing room with Lampard

( both above) during their glory days together at Stamford Bridge and has seen him mature from “silent leader” into Chelsea’s high-flying boss.

Lampard’s men are on a 15-game unbeaten run, they y are third in the he Premier League, two wo points off the top p and have qualified fo r the Champ ions League knockout stage.

And Cole believes ves they can win the lot. ot.

Chelsea legend d Cole sai d :

“Looking back now, I can say yes, of course, he was s going to be a manager.

“But, at the time, no. You’d have said other players. Frank wasn’t vocal, he led by example and was a silent leader. He did talk, but not like some of the others.

“If you’d have said who would go first into management, I’d have said Didier Drogba, John Terry and Michae Michael Ballack (beneath Lam Lampard, below). “But now you look at all the a tt r ibut es – intelligence, manmanagement, he’s s so eloquent and he ti tic ticks all the boxes. I’ I’m not surprised at a all how well he’s doing.

“Frank won’t thank me for s saying this, but th they can win eve everything. If you’re an Arsenal, you can’t w win the league. Nor Leicester. Chelsea are in the mix of three or four teams who can win the Premier League and five or six who can win the Champ ions League.

“It’s a better team than when t they won the Ch Champions League in 20 2012. Frank’s putting together a better team and that’s a big credit to him. I can see the winner of the Premier League coming from Chelsea, Spurs or Liverpool. Chelsea have got a massive chance. They’re as good as the other two.”

Cole believes the real acid test of Lampar d ’ s management was in the way he was able to make nine changes for the Champions League trip to Sevilla, bring in Olivier Giroud and still get a famous European victory.

“And Co le believes Giroud’s form will haunt Arsenal for letting him go.

“Frank is so driven

Lampard has shown he can be a success on the touchline after a stellar career on the pitch and so focused. Chelsea is a difficult club to manage. He’s done it the right way, cut his teeth at Derby and not put a foot wrong,” said Cole.

“Their win at Sevilla was brilliant. You had a lot of players coming in, you have to keep them happy and Frank is clearly doing that. That’s really good management.

“Giroud is outstanding. Some people at Arsenal behind the scenes have to be accountable for letting him go. Was it age? But then they signed Willian and David Luiz. He’s a brilliant player and he’s a model pro, a manager’s dream.”

Cole has done his coaching badges and wants to be a manager one day in t he f u ture , though he is enjoying family life and his work in the media as a BT S p o r t pundit. But he is also working as an ambassador for online trading company eToro, who have done a survey revealing that three in four football fans hav e enjoyed

football less in lockdown because of other distractions.

Cole believes it is time, prior to fans returning to stadiums, that football begins to appreciate and cherish them more.

He added: “We’ve learnt how important fans are.

“You hope it reflects in ticket prices, the experience for fans in the stadium, but also you look at the survey with three in four’s enjoyment affected. Football can be a respite, but you’ve got work, the kids – and it’s difficult to balance everything.”

Joe Cole is an eToro ambassador, speaking as part of eToro’s ‘Two Things at Once’ campaign. With eToro’s CopyTrader, you can copy top investors and live your best life at the same time. Find out more at www.etoro.com/ copytrader/

He’s intelligent, he’s eloquent.. Frank just ticks all the boxes