One of the reasons Frank Lampard was able to play at such a high level until a late age was because he looked after his body with such care and attention, and now the Chelsea boss is working closely with Thiago Silva to ensure the Brazilian’s standard remains as high as we have already seen at Stamford Bridge.
Lampard was 36 when he left Chelsea, and he still had a season of regular Premier League football in him before a stint in MLS. Thiago Silva, who plays in the less energy-sapping position of central defence, has recently turned 36 himself, and Lampard is making sure he manages his output at Cobham and for matches.
‘Within the squad you try to have standards you train at in terms of fitness work,’ explained the boss.
‘We try to balance it out as every player is different. In terms of how we train, I talk a lot to the sports science team, and they give me what they see, some of it is in my eye and the staff, and a lot of it is my relationship with the players and speaking to them.
‘When you have an experienced player and such a great professional like Thiago, that honest conversation is very easy,’ Lampard continued.
‘If it means managing training, managing game time which we did last week with Russia, I’ll be very upfront and honest with him in terms of what we both think.
‘I remember at the back-end of my career how I had to change my training programme, so I am very open to small tweaks with Thiago.’
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