Petr Cech’s return to Stamford Bridge as technical and performance adviser coincided with Lampard’s homecoming as head coach last summer and the former team-mates have been working closely in their new roles ever since, with the boss this week discussing how influential Cech had been in the signing of Edouard Mendy.

Our former number one has also been back out on the grass at Cobham lately assisting with the goalkeepers and Lampard pinpointed how important his presence was both in the office and on the pitch.

‘Petr has so much to give on that side of things,’ explained Lampard. ‘His day job is to be technical advisor and he’s a great help to me on that front. It’s been brilliant for me to have that.

‘With restart, and now playing at a fragile time, having Petr train with the goalkeepers and bring that experience is a great thing. He’s training and keeping fit, which is healthy for him and the goalkeepers.

'It’s something which is really positive for the goalkeepers as a whole, and Petr enjoys doing it, so why not give back and give that experience to the goalkeepers.

‘We are a tight-knit family here at Chelsea. It’s important we promote that a lot. We are trying to make sure the group is together. Why would you not tap into having the best goalkeeper in the world, which he was for a long time, to pass on that knowledge?’

Mendy’s arrival adds a further dimension to the competition between the posts, although the Senegalese international is not being considered for inclusion in the squad for today’s trip to West Brom due to a lack of training with the group.

Lampard acknowledged it was an area of the team that needed improvement but maintained his belief that increased options would only help to drive up standards.

‘We know we’ve had problems in the goalkeeping area in the first two games of the season and at times last year as well,’ admitted the boss. ‘Kepa [Arrizabalaga] himself can be honest and open about that in that search for the best performance levels. Mendy comes in to of course be big competition in that area.

‘I don’t want to talk about number ones, twos and threes at the minute because he [Mendy] has just come into the club. Now it’s about how we move forward and trying to get that performance level as best as it can be. It’s very important for the make-up of the goalkeepers at the club the level is competitive and supportive.

‘In the three personalities I’ve got, we have players who want to do their best for Chelsea Football Club and we will hopefully follow that with the performances we demand at this club.’

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