Four things Frank Lampard got wrong across both legs of Chelsea battering

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    Chelsea's Champions League campaign came to an end after two bruising quarter-final legs against Real Madrid – but it could've been so different.

    Frank Lampard insisted his side were still in the contest despite losing 2-0 in the Bernabeu opener thanks to Karim Benzema and Marco Asensio – and he had some hope at 0-0 in half-time of the Stamford Bridge return before Rodrygo's double.

    With little firepower and his substitutions coming too late, Lampard made plenty of mistakes across the two legs as Daily Star Sport have pondered below.

    READ MORE: Chelsea mascot's reaction to meeting Benzema is one of most heartwarming clips you'll see

    Defensive diaster

    Lampard looked keen to get out of the first-leg with a small enough deficit to overcome – rather than going to Spain in a quest to find the net.

    That decision backfired with Marc Cucurella thrown into a makeshift back three before being caught out of position – to cost Ben Chilwell his place on the pitch.

    That selection led to the dismissal of Chilwell after his pull on the edge of the box, with Trevoh Chalobah thrust into action in the second-leg before making a blunder of his own.

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    Team selection

    The reaction of Lampard's second-leg team selection by Chelsea fans told a story on Tuesday evening – with four central midfielders playing in front of five defenders.

    Despite Chelsea initially playing better than they had in the first-leg, their lack of attacking threat came from Kai Havertz being the only forward to start.

    With good chances dropping to N'Golo Kante in both the first and second-half of the Stamford Bridge encounter – a more potent finisher might've made for a different contest.

    Too much respect

    Lampard mentioned Toni Kroos and Luka Modric by name when asked about playing so many midfielders in the second-leg – which may point to another issue.

    He also said that his players were not yet at the same stage of their careers, which might well be true but not the ideal message to send before a game.

    That respect might've been the reason for naming Mateo Kovacic, N'Golo Kante, Conor Gallagher and Enzo Fernandez in the same midfield – and it didn't pay off.

    Late reacting

    With the scores level but Chelsea in the ascendancy, Lampard decided to leave his attacking talents on the bench before his team went 3-0 down on aggregate.

    With Joao Felix, Mykhailo Mudryk and Raheem Sterling all coming into the action in a sign of intent – it might well have been nothing but desperation with three goals required.

    It was of course a case of too little too late with Chelsea losing for a fourth straight game under their caretaker boss – with nothing left to play for this season.

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    • Chelsea FC
    • Champions League
    • Frank Lampard
    • Real Madrid FC

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