Chelsea manager Frank Lampard has said that he does not see former Blues teammate David Luiz as a weak link in Mikel Arteta’s side ahead of the FA Cup final.
The former Chelsea man swapped Stamford Bridge for the Emirates Stadium last summer, but has made a few mistakes in his first season as an Arsenal player.
The two teams meet at Wembley on Saturday as they fight it out to lift the FA Cup later that day.
Luiz has made 42 appearances in all competitions for Mikel Arteta’s side this season and has been a regular fixture since the Spaniard took over in December.
He is likely to be named in the starting XI for the match, but Lampard has insisted that the defender is not a player they will target during the game.
No, absolutely not,” he said when asked if Luiz was a weak link for Arsenal.
"I look at Arsenal as a collective and look at the individuals of the team, and however we prepare for the game has to remain private.
"But what I do have for David is a real respect. I played with him as a teammate in the Champions League in 2012 and the bond of that group was huge. David was a big personality, a big player within that.
"When I think about preparing for a game against Arsenal with David in the team, I know how good he can be and the influence he will be in the team. So I look at him in that way, absolutely.”
Luiz's first game back at Stamford Bridge as an Arsenal player didn’t go to plan with the Brazilian being shown red in just the 26th minute of the game.
The 33-year-old played a total of 248 times for Chelsea, over two different spells, winning one Premier League, one Champions League and two FA Cups during his time as a Chelsea player.
