Compare football odds from over 25 bookmakers and claim £500+ in Free Bets. Click here for offer!

Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard has warned the club that it would be losing its “leader” if it dispensed with the services of coach Jose Mourinho.

Frank Lampard regards Mourinho as the key figure at Chelsea, and someone he credits with Chelsea’s success in recent seasons.

“He’s one of the best in the world,” Lampard said. “I don’t see many better than him out there. I have a very good relationship with him and I love working with the man.”

Mourinho’s introduced Joe Cole at half-time during Chelsea’s Champions League semi-final victory over Valencia and moved of Michael Essien to right-back, from where the Ghanaian scored the winner.

“You can’t talk highly enough of the moves he makes,” Lampard added. “Many times they work for us and he is the focal point, the leader of our group, and the things he does make a big, big difference.”

Abramovich did not attend Tuesday’s game at the Mestalla, but Lampard did not mind the Russian’s absence.

“He’s put a huge amount in to the club and he has every right to do whatever he wants,” added the midfielder. “Whether he’s here or not, the support he’s put into the club in the last three or four years has been immense.”

Compare football odds from over 25 bookmakers and claim £500+ in Free Bets. Click here for offer!