Chelsea manager Frank Lampard has refused to rule out a return to action for wingers Callum Hudson-Odoi and Hakim Ziyech in Monday’s meeting with West Ham United.
Hudson-Odoi picked up a hamstring injury in training during the build-up to the Blues’ 1-0 loss to Everton, while another hamstring injury has kept Ziyech out of action ever since the 3-1 win over Leeds.
Lampard has sorely lacked some extra options out on the wing during Chelsea’s last two games, which have both ended in defeat, but he admitted during a press conference that the pair may be ready to return on Monday.
“It is their first day back with the group today training at a decent level, so I will have to see how they are the next two or three days to see if they make West Ham,” Lampard said (via the club’s official website) when asked about the pair’s chances of an imminent return.
Lampard was one of the managers keen to see the Premier League bring back five substitutions during games, having hoped that a change to the rules would help him protect players from suffering hamstring injuries like those of Hudson-Odoi and Ziyech.
The number of substitutions has been kept at three, although managers are now able to name nine players on the bench instead of the usual seven.
“I don’t want to talk about it as being a blow,’ Lampard added when asked about seeing his preferred rule change rejected.
“It is just that when we talked about it as managers, the overriding factor from the managers whether they were maybe for or against it, because I think there are different factors to this, was that this is a case of player welfare, making sure we are looking after the players and giving them the best opportunity to perform at an optimum level and not putting them at risk as such because of the uncertain times and the schedule.
“I think it [increasing the substitutions] would be really beneficial for player welfare. Normally in the modern day, player welfare and employee welfare comes down from the top. I don’t think it quite has this time but the decision is made and we just carry on.”