Michael, you’re fourth at the moment going to this round of games. That might change by Monday, but clearly you’ve got the team and the club into a good position now. There’s 12 games left, no distractions at all. Is there a great chance now for this group of players to go on and get Champions League football next season?
“Yeah, it’s good that everyone’s asking that question, you know. It shows that we’ve put ourselves in a good position to start with, I think. Going back to what I’ve just said before, really, about we’re not getting too carried away now, all of a sudden, after a few weeks. I think we know where we’re at. We’re in a good position. I’d still like to be in a better position, mind you, but we’re in a good position, and we’re positive. I think we should be, you know, I think there’s a lot of good things to take and look forward to, really. But then again, it’s up to us and putting it into play really. And yeah, it’s possible. It’s up to us to take the opportunity.”
It’s been two years since this club was in the Champions League. That feels like too long for a club of this size and magnitude.
“Yeah, of course it’s where we want to be. It’s where we want to be. You know, we’ve had success in this competition before and some great experiences in this competition and for all sorts of different reasons, it’s where we want to be, so it’s definitely what we’re pushing for.”
You’ve been a very physical presence at Academy games over the last month or so. I saw you speaking very passionately about the Academy, what it means. How important is that for you to be a visible presence and show youngsters that there’s a pathway there for the first team when you attend these games?
“Yeah, it’s massively important to me. I think [it’s] a little bit on my upbringing as well. You know, I came through at West Ham and with Harry [Redknapp] manager at the time, and Frank [Lampard Snr] as assistant manager, and a big part of that was pathways to the first team, and a connection with the first team. And funnily enough, obviously on the back of the FA Youth Cup, one of my big experiences was playing in the Youth Cup. We were playing York away, actually, and it’s a decent stretch from London. It was a Tuesday night and Frank Lampard Sr, as assistant manager, came and watched that, and that was kind of something that, all them years ago, I can still remember. I missed a penalty on the night as well, so I remember that. But it’s that connection, I’ve been brought up through that from West Ham and they were incredible at doing that. And how successful, coming to this club and obviously the history and the traditions here. It’s something that, yeah, I’m definitely passionate about. I understand the responsibility and being in the role I am. But actually, we care about everyone at the club and the Academy is such a huge part of it. We want players to come through the system and try and get in the first team, being around it. So, it’s important that, me and the staff, that we support that as much as we can.”