Frank Lampard vowed he will fight to make Chelsea successful and declared he would have become a pundit if he had wanted an "easier" life.
The head coach, who in his playing days became Chelsea's record goalscorer, has been unable to prevent a mid-season slump that has seen the Blues slide down the Premier League table.
Four defeats in the last six games has been the sting in the tail after a long unbeaten run, yet Lampard is confident there is enough quality in his squad to turn around their season.
"I've been playing football since I could walk, and playing professionally for 20-odd years," Lampard said.
"If I didn't want that challenge, I could have sat on the telly and done an easier job. I could have been a pundit and commented on what everyone does with hindsight whenever I want, but I don't want to do that."
Instead, he is determined to prove he is the right man for the Stamford Bridge top job, and should he sense any player does not match his ambition, Lampard will consider if they belong at the club.
"The players here I feel have a real desire to get out of this mini run of bad results. I can see that in them," said Lampard. "And if there are players who don't have those concerns to get out, I think they have decisions to make.
"If there are opportunities for players to leave, it would have to be right for them, right for the club and right for myself, then that could happen. But if not, we keep fighting and moving on."
Chelsea have a break from Premier League duties when they face Morecambe in the FA Cup third round on Sunday. They lost to Arsenal in the final of last season's competition.
Lampard is set to shuffle his squad for the game with fourth-tier Morecambe, giving fringe players and possibly some academy prospects the chance to impress.
After that it will be back to the Premier League, when he expects senior players to be straining every sinew in training to earn selection.
The likes of summer signings Kai Havertz and Timo Werner have struggled this season, but Lampard says every player should be desperate to make an impact.
Havertz has found it difficult to make the transition from the Bundesliga to the Premier League, with just one goal, two assists and a mere 23 touches in the opposition penalty area for Chelsea after 15 games in the competition, 10 of which he started.
Last season, at Bayer Leverkusen, Havertz totted up 12 goals, six assists and had 140 touches in the opposition box across 29 league starts and one substitute appearance.
Lampard was determined not to focus on individuals and appears keen to give his recent recruits time to bed in at Chelsea. His concern is a wider one and addresses every player at the club.
He said: "I don't ask for them to be jumping up and down when they go home about how great I am. What I'm asking for when you're here is, to train well, back your team-mates, have a determined attitude every day, and that's it.
"I don't expect it to be a popularity contest with myself - I don't think I ever felt that in a dressing room with any manager in the best of times or in tough times.
"The players have to keep fighting in tough times. The quality is in the group, without a doubt. There will be bumpy moments and we have to stick together."
World Cup Girlz back in the fold? Gilbert hints at return of experienced players for Brazil friendlies
For the first time in almost nine months, it seems as if Jamaica’s interim Reggae Girlz Head coach Xavier Gilbert will have members of the World Cup squad at his disposal, when they visit Brazil for a two-match friendly international series in June.
The Girlz, who first locked horns with Brazil, and lost 0-3, at the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup in France, went one better at last year’s global showpiece in Australia, as they not only held the South American giants to a goalless stalemate, but also ensured their elimination at the group stage.
By all indications, that performance, and by extension, the fact that the Girlz made an historic appearance in the knockout stages of the World Cup, earned them even more respect from the number 10-ranked Brazilians, who are currently in preparation for this summer’s Olympic Games in Paris.
The games, scheduled for June 1 and 4, are expected to assist Brazil in their preparation, while the now 42nd-ranked Jamaicans will get a much-needed test to regain their appetite for international competition, having last sported the nationals colours against Canada last September.
Since that Olympic qualifying fixture in Canada, members of the World Cup squad withdrew their services from national representation, citing lack of payment and mistreatment from the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF), among their reasons.
While it is yet to be confirmed how many, if any, of the World Cup players will make the trip, Gilbert gave the clearest indication yet that there might be a few, as he welcomed the games, after not utilizing the last FIFA window.
“It is always important to secure games during the international window. It not only assists in exposing players, but it also ensures the team is active, which helps our rankings, and also our quality of play. Because as you know, the more we play together, especially against quality opponents, the better the team becomes, and we also get to work on different things both offensively and defensively,” Gilbert told SportsMax.TV.
“The expectation is for us to give a good account of ourselves, it has been a while since these players have played together, but the good thing is that they are actively engaged in their respective leagues in Europe and United States. So, it is not like they were inactive, and obviously, it is not the first time they will be playing together.
“So, we just have to keep things as simple or as close to what we did prior to, and during the World Cup, to make sure we are competitive. It is going to be a little bit different, but it’s not far-fetched that we can get another positive result against Brazil,” he added.
Atletico Madrid 3-1 Athletic Bilbao: Hosts close in on top-four finish
Atletico Madrid beat newly crowned Copa del Rey winners Athletic Bilbao 3-1 at home in LaLiga on Saturday as Diego Simeone's side moved a step closer to a top-four finish.
Fourth-placed Atletico moved onto 64 points and have increased their advantage over Athletic, in fifth, to six points with five games to play.
Midfielder Rodrigo de Paul put Atletico in front in the 15th minute with a goal from outside the box. After controlling an attempted clearance from the visitors, his effort dipped just under the bar as his strike deflected off one of the Athletic defenders.
Athletic levelled just before half-time through Nico Williams after Antoine Griezmann lost the ball through a careless pass.
But Angel Correa restored the lead for Atletico in the 52nd minute and later came close to scoring again.
With 10 minutes to play, away goalkeeper Unai Simon inadvertently made it 3-1 with an own goal after Samuel Lino’s effort came back off the post, ending any Athletic hopes of a comeback.
Hull City 3-3 Ipswich Town: Tigers fight back three times to deny Tractor Boys
Ipswich Town missed the chance to move into an automatic promotion spot as play-off-chasing Hull City came from behind three times in a thrilling 3-3 Championship draw at The MKM Stadium.
Ipswich knew a victory would take them second after Leeds United were surprisingly beaten 4-0 by Queens Park Rangers on Friday, and they led on three separate occasions, George Hirst opening the scoring before Omari Hutchinson produced two brilliant strikes from the edge of the area.
However, buoyed by slip-ups from rivals Norwich City and West Brom earlier on Saturday, Hull dug deep to fight back on each occasion, Ozan Tufan and Liam Delap scoring their first two equalisers.
With Liam Rosenior's men 3-2 down with just four minutes to play, substitute Noah Ohio blasted his shot in off the crossbar to punish an error from Ipswich goalkeeper Vaclav Hladky.
The result keeps Ipswich behind second-placed Leeds on goal difference, though the Tractor Boys have a game in hand to come at Coventry City on Tuesday.
Hull, meanwhile, are two points adrift of the top six, with Norwich's goal difference advantage meaning their top-six spot is all but assured. The Tigers will, however, leapfrog West Brom if they beat Plymouth Argyle on the final day and Albion lose to Preston North End.
Data Debrief: Hutchinson's best not enough
Hutchinson was a man who deserved to be on the winning side on Saturday, giving Ryan Allsop no chance with two near-identical left-footed strikes from the right corner of the penalty area.
His goals came from an expected goals (xG) total of just 0.6, and he led all players on the pitch for shots (eight) and passes in the final third (21), also laying on three chances for his team-mates.
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