Frank Lampard has stressed the importance of Derby County’s players retaining their focus over the festive period.
Derby face a challenging run of fixtures over Christmas against fellow top six rivals in the Sky Bet Championship.
Lampard’s side face back-to-back away games at Sheffield United and Norwich City, before starting 2019 on home turf against Middlesbrough.
First up is the short trip to Bramall Lane to face Sheffield United on Boxing Day and, in preparation for the game, Derby’s players will reporting in for training on Christmas Day.
The 40-year-old has made it clear that although the players will be able to enjoy the majority of the day with their families, it is also vital to make sure they prepare as normal.
He told RamsTV: “I was always in for training on Christmas Day as a player, either in the morning or sometimes later on in the day.
“It probably isn’t a bad thing to get out the house for a little while, with all the presents and mess!
“We won’t be in for long but it is important to prepare right. We’ll be in early and then the players will be back with their families.
“We have to have our focus because we have a big game to prepare for and this is when the professionalism of the players comes into play.
“I’ve already told the lads it is about being professional. It’s the busy period of the season and you’re surrounded by people relaxing and enjoying themselves.”
He added: “We have to be bang on it, especially with the quality of opposition we’re up against. I’m excited about these games and also focussed as well.
“I want us to have a successful period over Christmas and, as we have tough games, we need to be right at it.”
Lampard is a big advocate of the Christmas and New Year games programme.
He grew up watching his father, Frank Lampard Senior, playing over the festive season and he was able to do the same during his illustrious and lengthy playing career.
Derby’s boss loves the feel around the games and explained: “I like the Christmas period and I grew up with it, both watching it and then playing in it for 20-odd years.
“For all you might bemoan you don’t get time off at Christmas when you’re working in football, I love the Boxing Day fixture and the games around this time of year.
“It doesn’t stop you being with your family either. We are privileged in the work that we do and sometimes we are doing short days compared to others, or even those working abroad, so we have to appreciate what we’ve got too.”
He added: “There’s lots of games in a short space of time so it’s an opportunity to make it a really positive period.
“We have to try and make the most of it and with around 2,000 supporters heading to Bramall Lane on Boxing Day we need to go and perform for them.”
Derby were 2-1 winners over Sheffield United when the sides met at Pride Park Stadium back in October.
Craig Bryson put the Rams ahead early on before Chris Basham equalised for the visitors before the interval.
Jack Marriott went on to score the winner in the second half for Lampard’s side with a deft finish from Craig Forsyth’s left-wing cross.
Chris Wilder’s side sit sixth in the table at the halfway stage and Lampard has been impressed with what he has seen from the Blades.
He said: “That game in October is gone and this is a new match, but we can take things away from the reverse fixture at Pride Park in October.
“Sheffield United are a very good team and have a very specific way of playing. It’s different to what other teams do and credit to them for that.
“They are well managed, with good players, and we’ll continue to analyse them ahead of Boxing Day. We will look back at what we did well against them, and what we can do better, but that’s only natural.
“It was a tough game a few months ago and we definitely have to expect that again. They dominated a lot in the first half, but we were more comfortable in the second half in terms of getting on the ball and got the winner with a really good goal.”
He added: “You’re never going to wipe the floor with teams in this division so sometimes you have to fight for the win and we certainly did that day.”
