London.Frank Lampard has admitted he isn’t happy at being left out of the Chelsea side, insisting he needs a run of games to maintain his form.

Lampard almost enjoyed a dream return to the starting XI on Wednesday night when his goal set the Blues on their way to what looked set to be another Champions League victory in Valencia.

The  midfielder’s  performance  appeared to vindicate manager Andre Villas-Boas’ decision to rotate him in and out of the team, something Lampard declared he was prepared to accept because of his love for the club.

Speaking after the 1-1 draw at the Mestalla, he said: ‘I don’t want to just pick my money up and sit on my backside on the bench.

‘But you have to respect the manager and respect the team and the quality and the squad that we have.
‘It’s a big squad and the manager has to do what he sees fit. If he wants to bring young players through at times then I have to go on with that.

‘Fortunately enough, I’m at a club that I love and I’ve got a great history here.

‘I want to continue that story on for a good few years, not just now, not just the next few months.’
Lampard has acknowledged he is much closer to the end of his career than the beginning but insisted that has made him even more determined to play as many matches as possible.

‘I’ve probably been like that for a while,’ he said. ‘I’m a player, I think, who likes to play regularly because I think it helps me get my momentum and stay fit and get confident.

‘Hopefully, now, I can get a run of games. It’s down to the manager.’
Speculation about Lampard’s future dominated the build-up to last night’s match, with Villas-Boas declaring he was fed up with answering questions about his fellow 33-year-old.

After starting three of the last four games on the bench - in addition to losing his place in the England side earlier this month - Lampard seemed destined to score last night.
But he said: ‘Nothing’s in the script - you have to work for it.

‘I’ve missed out on a few games lately and you have to keep on top of yourself, work hard and, when you get your chance, you have to show.

‘That’s what I tried to do.’
Ironically, it was Villas-Boas’ decision to substitute Lampard which ended up backfiring, with replacement Salomon Kalou immediately conceding a needless penalty which was scored by Roberto Soldado.

Chelsea also wasted several chances to kill the contest but still lie top of Group E on four points with Valencia in third place on two.

Frank Lampard says the wins must keep coming in the Barclays Premier League if we are to keep pace with the early front runners.

We have been champions twice since but surrendered our crown to Manchester United last season, and Lampard knows we have to keep churning out early-season victories to maintain our challenge this time around.

‘Because everyone has started so fast you can’t afford to let them get too far away from you and if you do you give yourselves a hill to climb,’ he said. ‘We did it last year and it was too much to come back from.

‘It’s so competitive with the Manchester teams particularly, and others fighting it out, unfortunately you do have to win all these games. You have to win your home bankers because everyone else does. We’re on a pretty good run, the Man United game was a strange old game, but other than that we’re on a good run and must keep that going.
‘With the inclusion of Man City as a major force and the team they’ve assembled, Liverpool have invested heavily and brought themselves back into the equation, and Tottenham have been for a few years.

‘Once you add them to the established four you really have got a competitive top of the league. You welcome the competition and you understand it can’t be a doddle, it can’t be easy to go and win leagues, it’s tough stuff [and] you can always be very pleased that you’re in what we all see as the best league in the world, and it’s so competitive now.’

Andre Villas-Boas has strengthened the squad over the summer to keep us competitive, a reason why Lampard has found himself on the bench in recent games, though he has no problem with rotation.

‘You have to be strong and keep yourself in shape, you have to train if you’re not playing and be ready when called upon,’ he said. ‘If that’s the way the manager is going to do it, we have a big squad, you have to respect that and the players that play when you’re not playing.

‘When you do play show it, and show the manager that you want to be one of the players he can put his house on that’s going to play regularly. That’s all you can do.’

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