Chelsea boss Frank Lampard has told his young players to take inspiration from Fikayo Tomori.
Lampard admitted that while he was clearly well aware of Tomori's ability from their season at Derby together, he could not be sure how he would get on in the Premier League until he put him in the team.
"Sheffield United at home was a game I thought he deserved the opportunity after how he trained," revealed Lampard.
"That's a great message to all the players. How you train will relate to whether you get picked. Those are the rules here. You have to train at a level, and he trained so well over a period of time he deserved to play.
"He gave me a big problem because he played so well and he's continued to do that. He is a project in a way but a nice one because everything you want him to do, he stands up and delivers.
"There was a moment at Lille the other day when he makes a bit of a mishap, thankfully Kepa saved it for him, and those are things he will want to get out of his game. That will come with maturity and the focus he's showing now. Other than that he's putting in really good performances.
"He played so well against Liverpool and Mo Salah, and against really quick Lille strikers in a tough European away game. Now I want him to push straight on like he did against Brighton, and like he hopefully will against Southampton and games going forward. Those are the standards and the consistency levels which will be the tester. That's what I mean about application."
