‘It’s fantastic’: Lampard impressed by £66m player both him and Tuchel tried to sign for Chelsea this season

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Frank Lampard has claimed he has been left really impressed by Erling Haaland since he joined Manchester City.

He said in his pre-match press conference that the striker was a player he was pushing hard for the striker to join the club last season.

Chelsea are set to face the league leaders on Sunday, with them having the opportunity to announce themselves as champions with victory at the Etihad.

The Blues meanwhile have players fighting for their place for next season when the new manager will be at the helm. It is widely expected that it will be Mauricio Pochettino takes over at Stamford Bridge this summer.

One player that he obviously won’t have in his ranks is Haaland, although this hasn’t been without the want of trying.

Lampard has claimed that he made a big effort to sign the Norwegian before he ended up in Manchester.

Lampard praises Haaland

He said: “It’s fantastic from him, the Chelsea side is another story. He’s a player I tried to bring to Chelsea, his level at that point was very clear.

“Credit to him, I love seeing players at that level with the hunger to be the best and in terms of dealing with him, you have to have a plan. Im sure the players have a good awareness of him.

“I think he’s special. I thought he’d adapt straight away. “Where he would’ve come here I don’t know, but I was pushing big.

“From our point, I was pushing it, I’m not sure what the appetite was elsewhere. The competition was big, I think there was a buyout clause that was relatively reasonable maybe considering the player. I don’t know the details.”

It will certainly be a tough task for whoever is at the back for whoever is chosen to play against City on Sunday.