Lampard to give Kante freedom in Chelsea midfield

Former Chelsea boss Maurizio Sarri exclusively deployed N’Golo Kante in a box-to-box role rather than in his more familiar place in front of the defence. Criticism of Sarri’s handling of the France international will not stop Frank Lampard from using him in much the same way. Lampard resisted those pleas when he named Kante in a slightly more advanced area for the UEFA Super Cup loss to Liverpool on Wednesday, believing predecessor Sarri to have the right idea. "It's been a discussion that has been over-talked at times last year and that was me watching it from the outside," Lampard said. "The important thing for me with all of our midfield is that we have the flexibility and nobody is pinned down to an absolute structure. "I think we saw elements of that against Liverpool where the players have the freedom to use their attributes. The idea that he wins the ball probably as well as anybody in world football doesn't mean that he has to sit in front of the back four and do that. "He also has it in his game to drive forward with the ball, to lead midfield areas and win the ball back high up the pitch. That's what I want to give him the freedom to do."

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