Chelsea midfielder Ross Barkley says that Blues' head coach Frank Lampard has had an impact on him throughout his career.
The England international grew up watching the former Chelsea player play in the Premier League, with the dream of one day being able to play on the same stage.
"As a young lad I would watch Match of the Day on a Sunday morning and then go off to my games for Everton," Barkley told Chelsea's official website .
"I’d see the likes of Rooney, Lampard, Gerrard banging the goals in every week. Lampard was one of my idols, because as a young midfielder I would see the goals he was scoring or creating every week and look up to him."
As Barkley established himself in the Everton team an England call up soon followed and with that a chance to play in the same team as Lampard.
"I played with the manager later on in his career with England and you could see how motivated he was," Barkley added.
"It was hard work all the time, running after training, non-stop movement to receive the ball, scoring goals. As a young player seeing that it affects you. You want to do the same things.
"He's taken that into his management. We work really hard and then on the right days we ease off and feel really good for the games."
The midfielder has started three of the seven games under the new boss, but despite not starting every game, Barkley has emphasised how much he is enjoying it at Stamford Bridge.
"I’ve been loving it," he said.
"I’ve been in and out of the side, so I’m staying positive and focusing on helping the team out. Training is going really well with the mix of younger players and experienced players. You can see with the hard work we’re putting in in training we’re going to be a very good side. It’s looking really good and it bodes well for the team."
