Frank Lampard has reiterated a key message to his Chelsea group that Mauricio Pochettino himself would be sending them ahead of a daunting trip to the Etihad Stadium on Sunday. Incidentdly, Lampard was the last man to take points off of Pep Guardiola's side in the league but few are expecting his current team to do so here.
Chelsea are in the bottom half and have won just once in their last 11 games. City, meanwhile, are steamrolling their way to a third straight league title and are potentially even less than three games away from a historic treble. It would be easy to underplay just how dominant they have been in recent months.
Since the champions elect last lost, away to Tottenham on February 5, Chelsea have been bettered 10 times and have won just four times. City, on the other hand, have victories in their last 11 games and 13 of the past 14. The title could already be theirs by the time the game kicks off if Arsenal lose to Nottingham Forest on Saturday evening.
READ MORE: Mauricio Pochettino's five-man Chelsea striker shortlist 'revealed' with £517m question answered
Although there is nothing to play for competitively, here, Chelsea's squad have futures to fight for a points to prove ahead of the expected arrival of Pochettino. The 51-year-old already has clear plans for the club and the large scale outgoings on the horizon this summer with several stars in an uncertain position.
His demands for total physical and mental buy-in to his philosophy are unrelenting, though, and have been known to push players further than previously expected. For Lampard, this is a key thing that he has learnt in his second stint in charge and it bodes well for Pochettino's arrival.
"Some simple things more than detail," he replied when asked what he had got out of a return to management. "To compete in the Premier League you have to have big motivation, big training ethics, big standards at the club or it is very difficult.
"I kind of knew that anyway because I played here for a long time but unless you have those things the tactical detail and the edge will not matter because no game plan ever works without intensity. That has always been so in football and will do even more so as the game becomes faster."
It is his second point on intensity that particularly mirrors Pochettino. This is not limited to the Argentine, Jurgen Klopp's 'intensity is our identity' mantra follows suit and Pep Guardiola's season changing outburst at his City players had a major impact on their mindset for the second half of the season.
The best teams have to have a balance of tactical brilliance and physicality but Pochettino has less leeway than most when it comes to most regarding accepting a base level of effort. In just two examples from his other managerial excursions, it is a ket point to be made.
"When you have no focus, it's not easy to perform," he said as Spurs boss in 2019. "We have the quality to win games but we weren't focused. When we are focused it showed today what we can do in the first half. Today we had intensity and concentration - we know what we need to do. When you are able to do that, the quality appears. We have tremendous quality and unbelievable players.
"If we show that intensity, then for sure we will fight for big things."
Eighteen months later and the same expectations were made clear before taking charge of Paris Saint-Germain. "Every game is different but we need to keep the same intensity and mentality. That only depends on us and the way we go into the game," said Pochettino.
At Chelsea it is a shift of the minds and the bodies that will be a big challenge but Lampard's parting message is a positive step towards helping his successor.
READ NEXT:
Napoli find possible replacement for key man as Chelsea told Osimhen and Pulisic transfer truth
Chelsea without seven players for Man City trip as Frank Lampard confirms injury news
Thierry Henry sends Mykhailo Mudryk transfer warning as Chelsea plot 'crazy' £161m double swoop
First Mauricio Pochettino transfer confirmed as Chelsea beat Man United to £17.6m wonderkid
Chelsea news and transfers LIVE: All the latest updates from Stamford Bridge
