Jody Morris has said there is more than meets the eye to the different ways he and Frank Lampard treat Chelsea's players, explaining that the head coach has his own bad cop routine that can come out when things are not going to plan.
The assistant manager deputised for Lampard at this afternoon's press conference to preview Sunday's FA Cup game against Nottingham Forest at Stamford Bridge and revealed that he is not always the stern one in the changing room.
Asked if it is a simple case of Lampard being the good cop and Morris, the former midfielder who won the Cup as a blue in 2000, being the bad cop, he replied: "No. It's not like that.
"We have different personalities. But there have certainly been moments when he’s 100% the bad cop. It's not like that. Maybe I’m just a little bit more moody face on the sidelines than he is.
"But no... when there are moments when things need to be said, 99% of the time it's him that says it."
Morris also explained how Lampard alters his approach depending on which player he is speaking to.
“You have to take the players individually at times, maybe weigh up how you treat them – I certainly know the manager does that, he has close relationships with some of them and when he needs to give some of them a kick up the backside he has no problem with doing it.
"There are moments when you go we are in a man’s game and we are in big competitions week in week out and that is what you get at Chelsea.”
While Lampard spoke earlier in the season about how he has a number of superstitions, including walking his dog a specific route, the assistant insists that he has no such quirks.
"No – he drives me mad. That’s how bad he is. I can’t say how."
Morris also said that Lampard will be fine to take charge against Forest having been struck down by a bug that has also meant Fikayo Tomori and Billy Gilmour have missed some training this week.
