Ranieri surprised by Chambers’ impact in midfield

Fulham boss Claudio Ranieri says he is pleasantly surprised by the impact Calum Chambers has made in midfield.

Chambers, who is on loan from Arsenal, has played at both centre-back and right-back for Fulham so far this season and was first deployed as a holding midfielder under previous boss Slavisa Jokanovic in Fulham’s 2-0 defeat at Liverpool last month.

And with Kevin McDonald and André-Frank Zambo Anguissa out injured, the England Under-21 international has impressed in Ranieri’s first two matches at the helm.

“He played very, very well,” Ranieri said of Chambers, who made seven tackles – three more than any other player – in Sunday’s loss at Chelsea.

“For me, he is a very good midfielder. He understands what I want. When he has the ball, he moves it quickly and in the right way. I am very surprised.”

Ranieri was more guarded when asked about the potential signing of Chelsea outcast Danny Drinkwater, who was a key part of the Italian’s title-winning season at Leicester in 2015/16.

“If I am interested, I don’t tell you. In this moment, my mind is only on my team and how I can help my players improve, to play together and to be a strong squad,” he said.

“I have time to understand what we need.”