Fikayo Tomori reflects on his Chelsea axing under Frank Lampard
Speaking to The Telegraph (Subscription Required), Chelsea loanee Fikayo Tomori has revealed feelings of anguish at being axed by former manager Frank Lampard.
The 23-year-old came through the ranks at Chelsea before making his first-team breakthrough last season. While he was more or less a regular in the first half of the 2019/20 campaign, he fell off the radar since.
He made just five appearances for the Blues this season before being sent out on loan in January to AC Milan. The Italians can make the deal permanent in the summer for £25m.
Tomori, for his part, admits he was not given an explanation for being dropped. While he is grateful for the opportunities Lampard has given him, it would appear that the relationship ended on a comparatively sour note.
“From being at 100 to literally going down to zero and then not knowing the reason why it had gone to zero, it was very challenging.”
“Maybe because of our history he thought I would accept it, but from my perspective, with that history, it felt more personal and harder to understand.”
The defender admits he felt hurt by the decision at a personal level and was unable to understand why it was happening. He goes on to admit he was helpless to change the situation despite putting in the work.
“I was trying to do extra and push myself more but, at that time, nothing seemed to work and nothing was explained to me.”
A welcome surprise!
Tomori and Lampard’s relationship goes beyond their time together at Chelsea. The player spent the 2018/19 campaign on loan at Derby County, then under the management of Lampard.
He was a regular for the Championship side as they came within a hair’s breadth of gaining promotion to the to flight. While his fellow Derby loanee Mason Mount went on to become a regular under Lampard, Tomori was not so fortunate.
The 23-year-old also goes on to admit that the move to Milan came out of nowhere. It has, however, proven to be a pleasant surprise, given he is now getting regular playtime at the San Siro.
If all goes well, he could even land himself a Serie A crown – the club’s first since 2011.
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The adversity will have toughened up Tomori who will definitely benefit from regular playing time at Milan. Whether he is still in Tuchel’s plans remains to be seen.
If his time at the San Siro so far is anything to go by, he is definitely on the right track.