'He's an idol': Enzo Fernandez hopes to follow in Frank Lampard's footsteps as a Chelsea legend

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Evening Standard

·6 February 2026

'He's an idol': Enzo Fernandez hopes to follow in Frank Lampard's footsteps as a Chelsea legend

Comparisons have grown between one box-crashing Blues No8 and another

Enzo Fernandez has praised Frank Lampard as an “idol” and “inspiration” for him, admitting he hopes to follow in the footsteps of the Chelsea legend.

The 25-year-old’s match-winner against West Ham last weekend was his 11th of the current campaign, and takes him to 27 from his first 151 appearances for the Blues - coincidentally, the same number fellow No8 Lampard had managed by that stage in his Chelsea career.

Comparisons to Chelsea’s all-time leading goal-scorer have increased in light of Fernandez’s growing reputation as a box-crashing playmaker, a notable evolution from the more reserved central midfielder he was signed as three years ago for a hefty £107million.

The Argentine World Cup winner - one achievement even Lampard cannot match - has delivered more combined goals and assists for Chelsea than any other player since the start of last year, and this term he leads the entire Premier League for runs made to become an option for a cross, according to Opta data.

It’s an instinctive trait head coach Liam Rosenior is evidently keen to tap into.

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"It's something I have worked on in training,” Fernandez said. “But the most important thing, I think, is also being in a good condition physically to get into those last few metres in the box, because I play in midfield and I have to get up and down a lot in my position.

"I've enjoyed being able to add goals and assists to my game. The coach gives me freedom, freedom to express myself in the last few metres of the pitch, and I've been feeling good.”

Indeed, Fernandez, having been afforded more gametime than any of his Stamford Bridge colleagues, is among the Premier League’s top-15 ranked players for distance covered this season.

Asked about the comparisons his growing importance and style has inevitably begin to draw to Lampard, one of the club’s greatest-ever players, Fernandez admitted the now-47-year-old Coventry City boss - who was his caretaker manager at Chelsea for a spell in 2023 - is “an inspiration”.

Lampard holds the record of most Premier League goals by a midfielder in history (177)

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"I've watched a lot of videos of Frank since coming to Chelsea,” he told Sky Sports.

“I've seen how he got into those last metres of the pitch and how he got into the box."

He continued: "During the time he was our coach, I didn't play in this position, I played further back, so I couldn't talk to him much about it, but I've been watching and learning from his videos since I came to the club.

Lampard is now in charge of Coventry City, who hold a narrow lead at the top of the Championship

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"[Lampard] was an exceptional player and a legend here for Chelsea. I don't like to be compared to him, because he has achieved a lot more here than I have. He's an idol. I hope to follow in his footsteps at Chelsea."