Mason Mount claims starting Thomas Tuchel’s Chelsea reign on the bench lit a ‘fire’ in him to prove his doubters wrong and work harder to get back into the team.
Mount was arguably Chelsea’s most consistent performer in the first half of this campaign and even captained the blues in Lampard’s final game in charge against Luton.
But he lost his place in the starting lineup as Tuchel gave some other players a chance to impress in the Chelsea’s draw with Wolves in January.
However, the midfielder won the German over with his attitude both on and off the pitch and has started all but one of the club’s games in all competitions since when available.
On being dropped by Tuchel, Mount said: ‘I’ve had that experience before. ‘I was on loan at Vitesse Arnhem when I was 18, 19. That first couple of months I didn’t play hardly at all.
‘I had that motivation and that fire to want to get into the team. The first game with the manager coming in, he went for a more experienced team.
‘I understood that and wanted to get back into the team, so that motivation and that fire that I have inside me came out. ‘I really tried to push to get back into the team. It’s been brilliant.
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‘We are working very hard. We’ve had tough games in this last period but we have come through it. ‘It’s exciting stuff, we continue to work hard. It’s been a great start.’
The midfielder says huge competition for places in Gareth Southgate’s team gives him extra motivation to perform.
‘We all know, there are so many good players in this team, players that are not here at the moment, with us, we just want to continue to be the best we can be, we’re always working hard,’ Mount added.
‘I’ve seen Jack [Grealish], Phil [Foden] do brilliant things. It motivates me to want to do the same, and continue to do well.
‘We all understand how many good players we have in this team. It excites us as players to know that we’ve got that, as we all have the same goal of winning things, and really doing great things with our country, that’s the most important thing.
‘We all have goals and ambitions to win major trophies, at England and at club level, we’re all competing to want to do that, at club level, but when we join England we’re together.
‘We’re very close as a group, we’re like family, so that’s the winning formula, especially major tournaments when you’re away with each other for a long time, we know we got on very well and that’s the most important thing.’
