Enzo Fernandez told to forget Frank Lampard comparisons as former Chelsea star urges Argentina midfielder to focus on 'dominating' games
Enzo Fernandez has been advised to ignore any Frank Lampard comparisons at Chelsea and focus on “dominating” games in his own way. Ex-Blues star Frank Sinclair has told GOAL why it would be foolish for the World Cup-winning Argentine at Stamford Bridge to try and model his game on a great of the past - as those exploits will never be replicated.Lampard joined Chelsea from London rivals West Ham in 2001. He would go on to spend 13 memorable years in west London, winning three Premier League titles, four FA Cups, a couple of League Cups, the Champions League and Europa League.Widely considered to be a modern day legend, and the greatest goal-scoring midfielder that the Premier League has ever seen, Lampard hit the net 211 times for Chelsea through 648 appearances - finding the target on at least 20 occasions across five consecutive campaigns between 2005 and 2010. The Blues have been crying out for a successor to their iconic No.8, with South American superstar Fernandez now filling that jersey. He has reached double figures on the goal front this season - for the first time as a Chelsea player - and added the kind of end product to his game that suggests he could start to match Lampard’s annual output.The 25-year-old has been urged not to focus too much of his attention on goal-getting, with the qualities that he possesses markedly different to those which Lampard boasted. The Argentina international is more of a combative presence in the middle of the park.Ex-Chelsea star Sinclair - speaking via Covers, which tracks sportsbook promos - told GOAL when asked if Fernandez can emulate a former fan favourite: “People talk about judging players against the Frank Lampards, what he'd done at Chelsea. I personally don't see anybody doing that ever again. For me, he's the greatest goal-scoring midfielder that this country's ever seen and the stats back that up. “But I think Enzo's target should be double figures every season, especially when he's playing a little bit higher up the pitch. He's got that capability to get on the end of things, arrive in the box and he can finish. He's got composure in front of goal. “I'd like to see him focus on his all-round game and dominating games. I know he's got [Moises] Caicedo behind him, who's been unbelievable this season and does a lot of the dirty work for him in the middle of the park. But I'd like to see him trying to improve his all-round game, not just scoring goals. “But I think he's come on as a player. I thought last season he may have struggled a little bit, but that was probably down to Caicedo was probably just feeling it, getting the feeling of his feet as well last season. But this season it's a lot stronger partnership between the two.“I think his target should be double figures every season. I'd be very surprised if he became a 20-goal midfield player. If he did, that means Chelsea's probably top of the league and a real top force again. So I'd be very happy with that. But, yeah, we'll see where he goes from that, but he is improving and it's good to see.”Fernandez, who briefly played under Lampard following his £107 million ($143m) move to Chelsea in January 2023 and the return of a club icon to the Stamford Bridge dugout, has told Sky Sports of trying to follow in the most illustrious of footsteps: “He's an inspiration. I've watched a lot of videos of Frank since coming to Chelsea. I've seen how he got into those last metres of the pitch and how he got into the box."During the time he was our coach, I didn't play in this position, I played further back, so I couldn't talk to him much about it. But I've been watching and learning from his videos since I came to the club. He was an exceptional player and a legend here for Chelsea. I don't like to be compared to him, because he has achieved a lot more here than I have. He's an idol. I hope to follow in his footsteps at Chelsea.”Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reportingFernandez has become a Conference League and FIFA Club World Cup winner with Chelsea, passing 150 competitive appearances along the way. He has filled the captain’s armband at times, as an on-field leader, and will be looking to claim another World Cup crown alongside Lionel Messi in North America this summer.
Enzo Fernandez has been advised to ignore any Frank Lampard comparisons at Chelsea and focus on “dominating” games in his own way. Ex-Blues star Frank Sinclair has told GOAL why it would be foolish for the World Cup-winning Argentine at Stamford Bridge to try and model his game on a great of the past - as those exploits will never be replicated.Lampard joined Chelsea from London rivals West Ham in 2001. He would go on to spend 13 memorable years in west London, winning three Premier League titles, four FA Cups, a couple of League Cups, the Champions League and Europa League.Widely considered to be a modern day legend, and the greatest goal-scoring midfielder that the Premier League has ever seen, Lampard hit the net 211 times for Chelsea through 648 appearances - finding the target on at least 20 occasions across five consecutive campaigns between 2005 and 2010. The Blues have been crying out for a successor to their iconic No.8, with South American superstar Fernandez now filling that jersey. He has reached double figures on the goal front this season - for the first time as a Chelsea player - and added the kind of end product to his game that suggests he could start to match Lampard’s annual output.The 25-year-old has been urged not to focus too much of his attention on goal-getting, with the qualities that he possesses markedly different to those which Lampard boasted. The Argentina international is more of a combative presence in the middle of the park.Ex-Chelsea star Sinclair - speaking via Covers, which tracks sportsbook promos - told GOAL when asked if Fernandez can emulate a former fan favourite: “People talk about judging players against the Frank Lampards, what he'd done at Chelsea. I personally don't see anybody doing that ever again. For me, he's the greatest goal-scoring midfielder that this country's ever seen and the stats back that up. “But I think Enzo's target should be double figures every season, especially when he's playing a little bit higher up the pitch. He's got that capability to get on the end of things, arrive in the box and he can finish. He's got composure in front of goal. “I'd like to see him focus on his all-round game and dominating games. I know he's got [Moises] Caicedo behind him, who's been unbelievable this season and does a lot of the dirty work for him in the middle of the park. But I'd like to see him trying to improve his all-round game, not just scoring goals. “But I think he's come on as a player. I thought last season he may have struggled a little bit, but that was probably down to Caicedo was probably just feeling it, getting the feeling of his feet as well last season. But this season it's a lot stronger partnership between the two.“I think his target should be double figures every season. I'd be very surprised if he became a 20-goal midfield player. If he did, that means Chelsea's probably top of the league and a real top force again. So I'd be very happy with that. But, yeah, we'll see where he goes from that, but he is improving and it's good to see.”Fernandez, who briefly played under Lampard following his £107 million ($143m) move to Chelsea in January 2023 and the return of a club icon to the Stamford Bridge dugout, has told Sky Sports of trying to follow in the most illustrious of footsteps: “He's an inspiration. I've watched a lot of videos of Frank since coming to Chelsea. I've seen how he got into those last metres of the pitch and how he got into the box."During the time he was our coach, I didn't play in this position, I played further back, so I couldn't talk to him much about it. But I've been watching and learning from his videos since I came to the club. He was an exceptional player and a legend here for Chelsea. I don't like to be compared to him, because he has achieved a lot more here than I have. He's an idol. I hope to follow in his footsteps at Chelsea.”Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reportingFernandez has become a Conference League and FIFA Club World Cup winner with Chelsea, passing 150 competitive appearances along the way. He has filled the captain’s armband at times, as an on-field leader, and will be looking to claim another World Cup crown alongside Lionel Messi in North America this summer.
