Lampard, fresh off looking down on West Ham and all their supporters, continues to build his reputation as a spoilt little boy by having a bit of a whinge about being rotated by Claudio Ranieri for a Champions League match in 2003,
“Ranieri announced the starting line-up, and to my amazement John Terry, Eidur Gudjohnsen and me were all on the bench. At first I thought it was a joke,”
“I was livid – as angry as I have ever been about a team selection. I went to my room and telephoned my girlfriend.
“I was seething and I told her: I could be leaving Chelsea because there is no way I’m spending a season on the bench to accommodate anyone else at the club.”
Great team spirit there from Lamps. Good thing he’s got a coach who’s willing to never, ever, drop him – right? Not anymore, apparently. Following William Gallas’ indiscretions this summer, Jose Mourinho appears to be on the team-above-the-rest warpath more than ever,
“I have to make choices and I will forget [players’] stature and history and how much they earn and the money they cost. I am interested in what happens on the pitch and I don’t care about names.”
It remains to be seen whether Franky will still play 10,358 matches this season. But with Michael Ballack’s arrival and Mourinho bigging up John Obi Mikel we may find out how sincere all that badge-kissing really is.