When Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang entered the Stamford Bridge pitch against Brentford, the striker undoubtedly gave Chelsea another dimension. From 17 touches the former Arsenal striker recorded four shots and provided a focal point for Chelsea's attack, and while his finishing left something to be desired, there was at least a sense that a goal might be a possibility for the Blues.
The west London club found the net just once throughout April which perhaps explains some of the clamour for a player who has 236 career goals. Certainly, Aubameyang has only retained a small role for the Blues, earning just 968 minutes of football despite the club's lack of goals.
Ahead of the game Lampard said: "I think we all know Auba coming in fresh for us in the last few weeks has been - he hasn’t played so much as a No.9 which is the main position that you need to have that sharpness in match days. He’s shown a little bit of that against Brentford, and he’s a reference; he’s got a history of scoring goals, [there] may be motivation for him to play here."
READ MORE: What Enzo Fernandez did as Thiago Silva and Ben Chilwell argued as Chelsea fall apart vs Arsenal
The 33-year-old earned 45 minutes from the off against Arsenal, but on this occasion did not manage to find an effort on goal as the Blues struggled to land a glove on the Gunners. After nine touches, a decent portion of which came from kick-offs, Aubameyang found himself sacrificed at half time.
A lack of sharpness was present again, as he struggled to read some passes played into him, but issues were present throughout the whole team. Passes were misplaced and runs weren't made.
In truth, Lampard was not necessarily confident that Aubameyang would have an immediate impact: "I still won't put too much on him because he might still need that bit of time. Maybe we haven't got time for him this season so much. But he is a high, high level striker and I understand the question to see him involved until the end of the season."
Lampard also noted that he wants to play with a more traditional No.9. He added: "I will want a No.9 that I can play off and that we can rely on. It's not ideal for me to ask Raheem or Joao Felix to play in that No.9 role. We had to in the games against Real Madrid. There are a lot of things to put together and the solution is not always easy. I have to see if they are ready to play or not."
Simply, it appears that Lampard does not necessarily believe the right option is at the club.
Speaking ahead of Arsenal he said: "I am very realistic about how much I can change in a short period of time. So we are trying to change certain things and it’s an interesting part and why I am enjoying the experience of being an interim coach to being a coach with a four-year contract because there are different ways you have to approach things and different priorities, probably, as a reality for you.
"Are there things we can change until the end? Yes, to improve. Will they be shown in results? Not necessarily because this is the Premier League and we need to improve performance and the reality is also that if we are struggling at the top end of the pitch to score goals, I get asked what’s the solution to that and there isn’t an easy one always and sometimes it’s a harsh solution in the summer that will be the answer to that.
"So when you want to fight and go toe-to-toe with teams you need to be able to score goals in those moments and that’s something that’s been a problem here for a while."
Chelsea still have a lot of work to complete in the summer. Perhaps Christopher Nkunku can relieve some of the burden but when the club's priority needs to be decreasing the squad's number, there are still some transfer market demands awaiting.
READ NEXT:
Man Utd give green light for Todd Boehly to sign Chelsea's 'next Didier Drogba'
Every word Frank Lampard said on Chelsea failures, aggression, Noni Madueke and the next coach
Chelsea player ratings vs Arsenal as Frank Lampard's side threaten to reach disgraceful nadir
Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher agree on Chelsea problem after 'disgraceful' Arsenal display
Transfer news LIVE: All the latest news and rumours from Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham
