Frank Lampard is 'not sure' how the absence of supporters will affect Chelsea's game against Newcastle United but the Blues' boss is expectng a 'tough game on all fronts'.
Steve Bruce has repeatedly lamented the absence of Newcastle fans since football went behind closed doors and the Magpies have only started to get to grips with playing at an empty St James' Park of late.
Indeed, before Newcastle's recent wins against Burnley and Everton, the black-and-whites had won just one home game since the restart in June.
There have been some strange results in lockdown, and home advantage is certainly not what it once was, but Lampard is not expecting the trip to Tyneside to be any more straightforward after his side lost the corresponding fixture last season.
"I'm not sure about the fans," the Chelsea boss told reporters on Zoom when asked if the absence of supporters would help the visitors at St James'. "I don't know the answer to the fans one for any game - let alone Newcastle.
"I think sometimes home fans can bring a pressure - make a team that want to play counter-attacking football feel like they can't do or different things - so I'm not sure about the fans.
"What I do know is Newcastle is always a very difficult game. I played in those games and they were difficult, particularly for us. We have the difficulties of the early kick-off. I'm not using it as an excuse - it's just a fact and a factor for us.
"Steve Bruce is a great manager who deserves huge credit for the job he's done there already and he organises his team brilliantly so it's a tough game on all fronts."
