Lampard: “We Played Against The Best Today!” 👏 Arsenal 3-0 Coventry City ⚽ Premier League

Hi, how are you? Good to see you. I haven't seen you for ages. You all right? I'm going to get a start, Andrew, yeah. Frank, the sports probably don't get much tougher than tonight. How do you assess that? Yeah, tough. High level opposition, best team in the league last year. And they showed it and they played like it, so yeah really tough, a big experience for the players. A lot of starting players for us, it's their Premier League debut, so parts of the game were tough. Of course we don't like the result but it can happen here, I didn't mind the reaction towards the end of the game as it went on, of course they're 3-0 up but I saw some okay things there and it's a big learning curve for the players today. They kept going, they kept going right to the end. And when I'm saying that there's Premier League debuts, the noise here at the start of the game was, you know, I remember that noise. It's different to the Championship no matter where you go. So those things are things to handle as a player. And we talked about it a lot before the game, but I have to go through that and experience that. We're not a team with players that have been up there and played at those levels. We've got players that are quality players that deserve to be here. They're going to have to take that on. Thank you. Again, I think that's why it's a good experience for them and for us and for all. And the important thing for me is to remain positive because Arsenal away will not define our season. It absolutely won't. But taking on the little lesson from it absolutely will. Phil, on the result side, how did it feel walking out tonight? You know, on such a big occasion, isn't it, for the club back in the Premier League and all that sort of stuff. And you must have been immensely proud, you know, back home. Yeah, it felt very good. Because you feel it as you drive up to the Emirates, you feel the level go up. It's also what you do, it's your job. For me, I'm very proud that we got back here but now we want to go and do well. We've lost a football game but in the beginning the feeling was pride but the feeling is try and go and do our job. Absolutely. Absolutely the players showed the right application, the right desire to want to do their job. It was just a difficult game for us in different ways and it didn't work out our way which a lot of people said before the game that might be the way it goes. We always want a bit more. We always want to compete and stay in the game longer and we didn't and when you lose the first goal. Even in the first half I thought normally we would have that little bit more bravery at the bottom of the pitch to play and vary our game. In the end we went longer a little bit but I have absolute sympathy with the players because the pressure is higher. We have to find better ways to get out of that. We played against the best today and that's a great level for us to look at now and then go, OK, where do we improve? What attributes do you think he brings to this team where the team is currently right now and what attributes do you think he brings out on you to the set-up that you will be in for the season? He brings his attributes I think are quite clear to the eye which is his strength and his power and speed and also I think around the box which he obviously couldn't get around there too much today but I think he scores goals, he's scored goals against my teams games before. He also brings this kind of presence as a team-mate. I saw as he left Nottingham Forest how much love the club had for him and his team-mates and that's what we need to like good people who come in with that kind of energy and I think he's going to be a big player for us. I'm very happy to have him and I think the perfect amount of minutes for him. He hasn't played so many minutes in pre-season. It's going to get better and better for us but for those number nine attributes that he has. You have obviously prepared thoroughly for this game, you had a corner after about 20 seconds, what makes this Arsenal side so difficult to play against? Because they have a bit of everything. They are very, very good off the ball, the best out of possession team in the league last year, all the data backs it up, they close down all your passing angles very, very quickly. We have not been exposed to that as a team, so I think that is why I am sitting here saying fair play to the players and they will take that on board. Is that just Arsenal or is that just the Premier League as a whole? It's a clear step up, we know that across the league, but Arsenal are the best at it and proved that last year and we felt that tonight and sometimes you respect the opposition and say that. Do you think having this test in time could actually be a good thing at first up because it just shows them exactly what the level is straight away? Yeah, maybe. It's good for the players, they understand that. We haven't had a lot of defeats over the last season. We had a few, but we always have a feeling of happiness in how we're playing and getting results. And I think the reality of football is not always like that. So for the players individually and collectively to feel that, I think it's a good thing. And it's important that I and we support them in that feeling because losing and feeling like a team is superior to you. It's not a nice feeling, but that's not the case forevermore. That's a high level. We know things we are good at, we know how effective we want to be in games, we have to show that going forward. No, please go. Thank you very much. Yes, sir.