Chelsea are weighing up the possibility of bringing Antonio Rudiger’s injury return forward after conceding four goals in their opening day loss to Manchester United.
The German defender underwent surgery on a knee injury earlier this year, which ruled him out of the final few matches of the 2018/19 campaign, and he was pencilled in to return against Wolves in September.
Rudiger is reluctant to rush back until he feels his knee is 100% recovered but Lampard is keeping a close eye on his progress with a view to bringing him back sooner rather than later, according to the Daily Mail.
Lampard rates Antonio Rudiger highly and told the Germany international over the summer that he is very important to his plans.
The 4-0 defeat at the hands of Ole Solskjaer’s team alarmed the Chelsea legend, with Kurt Zouma coming in for heavy criticism as Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial and debutant Daniel James all were on the scoresheet.
Lampard’s former team-mate Gianfranco Zola believes Zouma will struggle to hold down a place in the team when Rudiger returns to full fitness.
He told told beIN Sports: ‘Certainly Rudiger has got more experience. Kurt Zouma fouled Marcus Rashford for Manchester United’s penalty.
‘I think he (Rudiger) has a better understanding with Christensen.
‘I believe if they want to play out from the back, Rudiger and Christensen will be more suitable.’
