Frank Lampard has promised Olivier Giroud that the Frenchman “will get his minutes as we have plenty of games, we play every few days.”
The 34-year-old has struggled to force his way into Lampard’s side this season, but made the most of a rare opportunity against Rennes on Tuesday, scoring the winning goal in injury time to book Chelsea’s place in the knockout stages of the Champions League after he was introduced as a second half substitute.
Lampard was asked what he can do to keep Olivier Giroud at Chelsea when the striker is keen for minutes.
The Chelsea boss says: “He does things like he did tonight, which is great for him. His hold up play and his physicality when he came on was great.
“I have a problem because Tammy is playing well, and we know what he did last year, and there’s also Oli who always plays that way and is incredible.
“So I have two players in a similar position that are fighting for a place- that’s a good problem to have.
“Oli will get his minutes as we have plenty of games, we play every few days, I made plenty of changes today to keep freshness in the team.
“I think the reason you see such a reaction after he scored the goal is not just because it was a late minute winner but also it shows what Oli means to the team.”