Lampard opens up on Chelsea losing ‘throwback’ Mason Mount to Man Utd
Frank Lampard has given his view on Manchester United signing “throwback” player Mason Mount, who he feels will “raise levels” at Old Trafford.
Having been at Chelsea for 18 years, Mount might have expected he’d have remained with the club for his entire career. However, nobody can blame him for apparently wanting to be paid in line with the Blues’ new signings of late.
After such a long time at the club, playing a starring role over the couple of seasons prior, Chelsea could have afforded him that luxury. However, they did not, and he’s got himself a good move to Manchester United.
Some have suggested the £55million move will be less than successful, but Mount’s former boss at two clubs, Lampard, feels it’ll be very successful, given the attributes he’ll bring to Old Trafford.
“I’ve seen alternative reaction, ‘why would you pay that for him?’, Mason Mount is going to be a fantastic player there, in my opinion,” Lampard said on The Diary of a CEO podcast.
“I think it’s a great signing. What I would say about Mason is, you talk about modern players and how the game’s changed, he is a throwback to the attitude and the commitment, and the quality.
“That was the beauty of working with Mason, he gave you so much in terms of his effort every day, anything you’d ask him to do, yeah, he kind of got it.
“I think any great player has to have that kind of intelligence and that desire about them. Like, ‘what do you need me to do?’, yeah, I’ve got it, I’ll do it and I’ll repeat it, and also quality.
“So in terms of what he’ll bring to Manchester United, it won’t just be what Mason brings, he will bring loads of talent, but he’s just going to go [up] and [raise] levels.”
Mount’s last full season with Chelsea – given he was injured for half of last season – saw him score 11 Premier League goals and provide 10 assists. United are getting quality, and Lampard feels he’ll slot in alongside their other great players.
“Don’t get me wrong, the bar raise is already there with Bruno Fernandes, [Marcus] Rashford, Casemiro… he will absolutely fit in with it,” he added.
“If you’re trying to build, a group mentality of a team, players who are just going to give everything with their talent, he fits it.”
Lampard also stated he would have hoped to see Mount “stay at Chelsea” but this move is a “good challenge” for the Englishman. If he performs well in a side with the quality of United, he’ll look an even better player than he has previously.
Conversely, if he doesn’t perform well, he’ll stand out, so there’s certainly a good challenge for him to play at the level he is capable of.
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