As a result of Wednesday's 2-0 loss to Real Madrid in the first leg of their Champions League quarterfinal, interim manager Frank Lampard of Chelsea has acknowledged that his team is experiencing confidence issues.
The Blues were thoroughly defeated and were fortunate to just give up twice through Karim Benzema and Marco Asensio each side of the halftime interval after Ben Chilwell's second-half dismissal.
Chelsea put on yet another subpar performance; they have now gone four games without scoring for the first time since December 1993. Lampard acknowledged that the team's confidence is low.
He said to BT Sport, "I felt there was a lot there for us. Even though they are a strong team, I could envisage a time when the players would be struggling.
"There is a slight lack of belief. It's not easy to come here like that, and I think the players have to understand how good they are and what they can do. I think we might be a little short on that right now.
Lampard urged his team and the crowd to maintain optimism about Chelsea's chances of making it further despite the challenging circumstances.
With ten men, Lampard argued, "I don't think they sliced us open. "We had our opportunities at that point in the game. Joao [Felix] early on, Raheem [Sterling], and Mason [Mount] toward the finish were our three best opportunities.
"There were some positive aspects, but the outcome is the reality. But, I just told the players that Stamford Bridge is a wonderful place where extraordinary things can happen. They have a great squad, but we have to have faith in them.
He went on: "There are certain aspects to our game that we must grasp in order to adopt a more optimistic perspective. If we can accomplish it, I was present during those nights at Stamford Bridge."
Prior to the second leg, Chelsea must play Brighton in the Premier League on Saturday. Real is then scheduled to visit the Bridge the following Tuesday.
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