Chelsea midfielder Mateo Kovacic has revealed manager Frank Lampard has set him the target of scoring more goals by encouraging him to shoot more.
The Croatia international is a solid performer for this Blues side but doesn’t exactly have much of a reputation for contributing huge amounts in the final third of the pitch.
MORE: Chelsea ready to fork out £64M in order to seal Premier League return for Copa America winner
Chelsea fans probably won’t be too bothered as long as Kovacic continues to do his job in midfield, but goals from that area are always a nice bonus.
Current CFC manager Lampard is of course well known for being one of the finest goal-scoring midfield players of recent times, so there should be an opportunity there for Kovacic to learn good habits from his coach.
Speaking about this issue in an interview with Chelsea’s official site, Kovacic admitted this something that Lampard has said he wants the 25-year-old to add to his game.
It remains to be seen if it will work, but Blues fans can be pleased at Lampard’s desire for perfectionism from everyone in his squad.
He said: “I never had the pressure to score goals, I was never obsessed because my game is not about goals, but obviously if I want to go to the next step I need to improve it.
“The coach was the greatest goal-scoring midfielder that ever played. There were many, but he really scored a lot of goals. He tells me always that I need to shoot. Now I am trying more!
“It’s just a thing of mentality, to try to score, to be aggressive and to have the hunger to score goals. I want to improve that, I’m trying to improve that and I am sure I will get there.”