Lampard: Hard work and good recruitment have improved Chelsea

Frank Lampard believes hard work and good recruitment have been major reasons behind Chelsea’s transformation.

The Blues’ 4-0 thrashing of Sevilla meant they will finish top of their Champions League group.

And it extended their unbeaten run in all competitions to 15 matches, during which time they have kept eight clean sheets.

It’s all a far cry from the 3-0 defeat against Bayern Munich in February, when Chelsea were totally outclassed by the German side.

Bolstered by a batch of new signings, Lampard’s side look a much stronger outfit now.

He explained: “There are lots of aspects to it. We’ve worked. The lads have worked.

“Even in the short off-season, myself and the staff did a lot of analysis of areas of our game we wanted to improve.

“My job is to put that into action and work on the training ground.

“Then there’s the other side of that, which is working with the players to make sure that the push, the drive and the spirit of the group is good.

“Then the biggest thing is the players. The players are the ones that have to go out and perform.

“Some of the recruitment of players we’ve brought in has certainly helped.

“The competition (for places) has started to be really positive within the group – players trying to get in the team and training at the top level.”

Chelsea’s form has raised hopes that they could sustain a genuine challenge for the Premier League title this season and perhaps the Champions League, which the club won in 2012.

However, Lampard added: “I have to put a small warning next to that because people will get excited.

“As always, consistency is the thing that will win you titles, whether it be Premier League or Champions League.

“We have to sustain these levels regularly. That’s definitely the next test.”