Lampard homes in on middle England

How World Cup omission and a summer holiday set Chelsea's new-model playmaker on the road to redemption

Frank Lampard knows a thing or two about clubs with a family atmosphere. After all, his previous employers were managed by his uncle and father. So when the midfield player says that this Chelsea team are as close-knit as the West Ham of old, you take note. The idea might seem as improbable as the Blues' League position, and yet training on Friday morning told its own story. The players were in mid-session when Felicity, one of the club's biggest fans, ran on to the pitch to kiss last week's scorers. "It's a fun weekly ritual," Lampard smiles. "Those who find the net get a peck."

Just as was the case with Uncle Harry Redknapp at West Ham, the manager is the key to the recent success at Stamford Bridge. Claudio Ranieri may be eccentric, but he is also a highly polished football coach who knows how to get the best out of his eclectic mix of stars. No one has benefited more from the Italian's touch than Lampard. The 24-year-old's potential was always evident at West Ham, but many remained unsure as to his ability to perform at the highest Premiership level. "How will he fare once removed from the comfort of Upton Park?" the sceptics asked. "Not too well," appeared to be the answer for several months after Ranieri had spent £11m to tempt him along the District Line.

For much of his first season at Stamford Bridge, the responsibility of having to lead the midfield of a club with serious trophy ambitions seemed to be too much for the lad from Romford. "I had been at West Ham all my life," Lampard now explains, "since I was a baby, really. Then, suddenly, you come out into the big wide world, join a bigger club with bigger stars, and it catches you out a little. Yeah, it took time for me to feel my way in, but I think that's normal for a guy my age."

Lampard was not helped at the time either by the poor form of Emmanuel Petit. Midfield partnerships are a little like bulbs on a Christmas tree: if one goes out, the other cannot function either. The Frenchman is now at something approaching his Arsenal best, though, and the two are beginning to look dominant in their midfield roles. "I like these two together," Ranieri says. "They have taken a little while to get to know each other, but things are going well now. Frank has grown stronger alongside Manu."

It is to Lampard's credit that, despite the lack of consistency in his performances last season, he was still the most used player at the club. His hard work saw him improve towards the end of the campaign, but his efforts came too late to be rewarded with a place in the World Cup party. This was a crushing blow for a player who had missed out on a squad berth at the European Championship two summers before as well. "It was a massive let-down," says Lampard, who has seven caps. "I wasn't too sure what to expect before the squad was announced, so I deliberately didn't get myself too wound up or anything. But it is still awful getting the call. When the manager rang me and told me I wouldn't be going, it really hit me hard. I was shell-shocked at the time, but I can now see the benefits of that decision.

"For a start, it gave me the longest break I had had in six years. To be able to go away on holiday and relax for seven weeks is a real luxury. I watched some football, but not bundles, and totally re-charged the batteries. I kept fit without getting completely knackered and basically got my appetite back for the game. I think I needed that as a footballer. When you have been involved in the game all your life it's sometimes important to step away and look at the bigger picture.

"I'm a bit of a thinker anyway, but I definitely had a good look at myself last summer. After relaxing for a bit, I kept planning what I would do this season. I was determined to come back, pull my finger out, and try to become a real big player at Chelsea. This is a massive club, and I want to make an impact here. I want to stay at the club and be known by the fans as one of the top players. I am very lucky to have this opportunity, and I have no intention of wasting it."

The irony is that today Lampard would walk into an England World Cup squad, if not the team. Apart from Paul Scholes, who is showing signs of a return to form, no English midfielder is playing with such purpose and consistency. Lampard has always been adept at passing the ball, but now he is carrying it forwards himself.

"My dad [Frank Senior] is my biggest critic," says Lampard Junior. "He will tell me if I'm doing something wrong, and he always says that a good player shouldn't stand on the ball. Passing it around is one thing, but if you want to be a little bit special, you have to drive the play forward. I feel really fit and sharp, and that's why I have the confidence to grab games by the scruff of the neck to try to make things happen. It's been working so far, so I have no complaints. Looking around the Premiership, I would like to think that there is no one playing better in my position at the moment."

It is often easy to attribute labels to footballers, but Lampard does seem to have changed his ways on and off the pitch. Gone are the lurid headlines linking him to holiday escapades and drunken sessions at Heathrow hotels. Gone, too, are the ineffective showings for his club. With Ranieri helping at Chelsea, and his girlfriend providing the right support, Lampard is a much more rounded person. "I'm a bit older now," he says, "but I'm also living with my girlfriend and our dog. So maybe my life is more settled. I'm very happy in my personal life and I think it shows on the pitch. I'm a little wiser."

Chelsea, too, have grown up this term. The goalkeeper and central defence are second to none in the League; the midfield is ticking along nicely; and the forwards, led by the evergreen Gianfranco Zola, are scoring the goals. "There's a really good spirit here at the moment," Lampard explains. "That was something that was perhaps lacking before, but now the players get on well, even when they are away from the club, and that helps build a strong team."

That new-found bond and their current League status will be given a serious test against Manchester United at Old Trafford on Tuesday in the quarter-finals of the Worthington Cup. It may be "only" the League Cup, but Lampard insists that it is important for the team to keep their momentum going. "The truth is that there's still a question mark hanging over us," Lampard says. "People are wondering if we can keep up our form, so it's up to us to prove to everyone that we can. We want to play good football and try to win, because for us, this game is an important gauge of our progress."

The same could be said of Lampard himself, who will come up against the man who he needs to dislodge from the England team. At the start of the summer that would have seemed improbable, but Scholes is now well within his sights. They say World Cups can make players. In Lampard's case, that might turn out to be true.