Chelsea manager, Frank Lampard, on Friday said that he still needs to assess Midfielder Robert Kenedy, following the Blues’ 1-0 defeat to Kawasaki Frontale in a pre-season friendly match in Yokohama.
He also said that he wants defender, Kurt Zouma, to remain at Stamford Bridge ahead of next season.
Lampard suffered his first defeat as Chelsea boss after Leandro Damiao’s header ensured Frontale defeated the West London club.
Speaking on Kenedy and Zouma’s future at the club, Lampard was quoted by Football London as telling reporters after the match: “In terms of Kenedy, my feeling coming into a big squad with a transfer ban was that I need to assess the players for as long as I can in pre-season to make sure we pick a squad with me having had good eyes on them in training and in games.
“In terms of Kurt Zouma, he’s a very good defender for us, very good player, very good person and professional. I want him here, simple as that.
“We are competitive with the centre-backs we have in the team and he had a very good season at Everton and I can understand why they want him. He’s a Chelsea player and I want him.”
Chelsea will now tackle Barcelona on July 13 in their next pre-season fixture.
