Chelsea title challenge depends on Frank Lampard keeping each squad member happy, says Paul Merson

Arsenal legend Paul Merson has backed his former club’s London rivals Chelsea to make a serious title challenge this season while highlighting the biggest challenge facing coach Frank Lampard.

Lampard’s side are fifth in the Premier League but just three points behind leaders Leicester, and in recent weeks they have shown defensive improvements while continuing to impress with their goalscoring prowess.

“If we are going to talk about Tottenham winning the title, then Chelsea are right in the mix,” Merson told Sky Sports. “If Spurs can win it, then for sure Chelsea can win it.

“Frank Lampard has now got who he wants in key positions and you can really see the difference. Thiago Silva is world class. They’ve got two full-backs who are as good as any in the league and, for me, they [Reece James and Ben Chilwell] are the two England full-backs. They are outstanding. Silva is also only going to make Kurt Zouma a better player and the goalkeeper, Edouard Mendy, is solid.

“I know Sheffield United are down at the bottom at the moment, but they are a hard team to play against […] however, [Chelsea] literally dismantled Sheffield United,” Merson said, referencing the Blues’ 4-1 win over Chris Wilder’s side last week.

“They made them look like a proper relegation team, which I don’t see, because I think Sheffield United will be okay this season. They made them look distinctly average and that’s a sign of a good team. It’s coming from everywhere, too; Hakim Ziyech has got a left foot that can open a can of worms, Timo Werner scores plenty of goals, Tammy Abraham looks like he’s getting better and then there’s Mason Mount. They’ve just got so much attacking talent.”

The wealth of talent in Chelsea’s squad could also lead to occasional problems, however, Merson suggested. 

“The problem is going to be keeping everyone happy and that’s going to be the hardest job in the world. You are going to have top, top-draw players not playing, and that’s hard.

“Kai Havertz wasn’t even in the squad [against Sheffield United] because he was unwell, and Christian Pulisic is injured, too. Mateo Kovacic played on Saturday, but he hasn’t been playing. That’s going to be the problem Chelsea have to contend with going forward. Is the squad too big? 

“It depends how far they go in certain competitions, but that is where [Jose] Mourinho was great. If you look at his Chelsea team and the squad he had at Stamford Bridge, you never heard anybody moaning. From the outside, you always thought: ‘Wow! How do you keep all those players happy?’ There’s got to be an art to it, because when you’ve got that quality of player, to keep them all happy when they are not playing is a major skill.

“It’s alright people saying they get £100,000 a week, they get paid well or whatever, but they want to play football. As a player, you want to play football and that will be Lampard’s biggest challenge going forward.

“They also have to play a better quality of opponent in the games coming up, but everything at the moment looks good.”