Mason Mount has been praised by Frank Lampard for his “different type of football” which has endeared him to “managers that he works for.”
The England midfielder continues to impress his manager for his ‘clean cut’ image and hard work on his game.
Lampard said: “He doesn’t do too many treble step overs and flicks over the back of his head as he shouldn’t do.
“He makes really efficient, clean, sharp passes, he presses as well as any midfield player that I’ve worked with or played alongside.
“There are a hundred things within his game that impress managers that he works for. He’s very easy and casual because he hasn’t got an Instagram reel of those flicks and it’s a different type of football which makes it easy for people to bracket him off. I certainly don’t.
“With Mason, I think there’s something about him, he looks clean cut, I think he’s doing one advert at the moment where he’s taking his top off and that’s about as edgy as Mason gets.”
Arsenal legend Ian Wright has called on the penalty technique used by Bruno Fernandes to be banned.
The Manchester United star regularly stutters and jumps while stepping up from 12 yards.
But following West Brom goalkeeper Sam Johnstone being penalised for stepping off his line in the Baggies’ 1-0 defeat at Old Trafford last night, Wright branded the rule ‘unfair’.
He said on Match of the Day: “It is [difficult for goalkeepers].
“And then you’ve got forwards jumping up, doing this, doing that sort of stuff and the goalie can’t move his foot off.
“They should stop people jumping and that, they should have to make a full… just run at the ball and hit it. If they can move and the goalies can’t, that’s not fair.”
Host Gary Lineker then posed the question: “Are you going to have a law that says you can’t jump?”
To which Wright, 57, replied: “Yeah, you have to go straight through your penalty run-up, no jumping.”
Fernandes went on to adopt the technique again for his re-take, this time beating former United academy stopper Johnstone and sealing an unconvincing Red Devils win.
Jorginho has also used this penalty technique during his time at Chelsea, although was recently removed from spot-kick duties by manager Frank Lampard in favour of Timo Werner.
Wayne Rooney revealed Everton wanted him to join Chelsea rather than Manchester United in 2004 because they were offering the most money.
He told the UTD podcast: “I knew it [joining United] was an option before Euro 2004.
“I knew Manchester United wanted to sign me. I think going to the Euros, and doing well there, probably added a bit more money on to the transfer fee but I broke my foot and found out a few things.
“Everton were really struggling for money at the time and I found out they were listening to offers from people as well. They were trying to push me to sign for Chelsea because they were going to pay the most money.
“But, once I knew United were interested, I wanted some confirmation that they did want to sign me. Once I knew they did want to sign me, it was the only club [for me]. It was a perfect fit for me.”
Frank Lampard believes Kai Havertz will be in contention to face Rennes on Tuesday after missing two weeks with the coronavirus.
The 21-year-old got a positive test for Covid-19 shortly before the last Champions League clash with the French club and he was self-isolating at home until last week.
The Germany international is reportedly training at home on an exercise bike after recovering from mild symptoms associated with the virus.
Despite his training being disrupted, Havertz could be set to feature as Blues could qualify for the knockout phase with a win in the match at Roazhon Park.
Lampard said:”I hope he is available. He’s been in for two, three days training doing some individual work and he looks pretty good.
“Kai is a naturally fit boy. I hope to have him travelling with us to Rennes on Tuesday. Maybe get some minutes. I’m not sure how many because it was two-week isolation but he looks in good shape.”
Zlatan Ibrahimovic bagged a special brace at the Stadio San Paolo, then limped off injured, while Tiemoue Bakayoko saw red as Milan conquered Napoli 3-1.
Matteo Politano forced Simon Kjaer into a desperate interception, but Milan had the stronger start, as Alex Meret palmed a Hakan Calhanoglu rocket round the post and on the resulting corner, Kjaer shinned over from six yards.
Ibrahimovic broke the deadlock with a magnificent goal, as he got in front of Kalidou Koulibaly to steer his header into the far bottom corner from 12 yards on a Theo Hernandez cross. It means Ibrahimovic is only the fourth player in the three points for a win era to score in his first six games of the season.
Napoli fought back in waves, as Gianluigi Donnarumma got down to palm a Mertens effort round the post. On the resulting corner, there were three huge chances in one move, as Tiemoue Bakayoko’s shot was parried by Donnarumma, Giovanni Di Lorenzo fired onto the bar and Hirving Lozano’s follow-up was fingertipped over.
Mertens also tested Donnarumma from a tight angle after Insigne floated a free kick over the top.
Just as Napoli were pushing hard, Milan scored their second and it was Ibrahimovic again. Ante Rebic took on Kostas Manolas and floated a cross to the back post, where Zlatan improvised using his knee to knock it over the line from point-blank range so he could get there before Mario Rui.
Ibrahimovic had the ball in the net for a third time, but was clearly offside when starting the run as Meret came rushing out.
Instead, Napoli pulled one back when Franck Kessie was muscled off the ball and Mertens reacted quicker than anyone else, squirming away from Alessio Romagnoli to fire in from close range.
However, just as the Partenopei were back in the game, they went down to 10 men, as Bakayoko received his second yellow card for an ill-advised challenge on Theo Hernandez, seeing red against his former club.
There was a worrying sight for Milan fans, as Ibrahimovic pulled up clutching the back of his thigh mid-run and immediately asked to come off. It was difficult to tell Napoli were down to 10 men, as they continued to attack and the Rossoneri seemed shaken without their talisman.
Kessie also had problems feeling dizzy, so while they were down to 10 men, Napoli created another chance, Petagna combining with Mertens only to fire straight at Donnarumma.
Milan secured the points deep into stoppages with the first Serie A goal for teenager Jens Petter Hauge. He ran on to a Bennacer through ball, got past Manolas with a stepover and managed to squeeze the finish in from a tight angle, despite Meret getting something to it.
Liverpool moved level on points at the top of the Premier League table after a comprehensive 3-0 victory over Leicester City at Anfield on Sunday evening.
The Reds took a 21st minute lead when Jonny Evans deflected a corner into his own goal from inside the six-yard box.
Diogo Jota furthered their advantage by steering in a header from Andy Robertson’s delivery across goal and into the corner just before the break.
Jota became the first player to score in his first four top-flight home matches for Liverpool as the champions earned an impressive 3-0 win over the visitors.
Liverpool struck the woodwork three times after the break as they looked to strengthen their grip on proceedings – and they did finally add to their tally when Roberto Firmino converted a header at corner with five minutes remaining.
The result elevates the champions into second place in the standings, only behind Tottenham Hotspur on goal difference after nine matches.
