Chelsea icon Frank Lampard snubs Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi in best ever opponent

FRANK LAMPARD has snubbed Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo when discussing his toughest ever opponent

Press conference with Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel ahead of his side's Premier League match against Manchester United

Former Chelsea boss Frank Lampard has snubbed the likes of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo by naming ex-Barcelona midfielder Andres Iniesta as the toughest opponent he faced during his career.

Lampard made over 900 senior appearances for both club and country during his 21-year playing career.

He spent the majority of that spell at Stamford Bridge, where he won three Premier League titles, four FA Cups and the Champions League during a trophy-laden stint in west London.

Inevitably, Lampard played against some of the biggest names in world football for Chelsea - including the likes of Messi and Ronaldo in European competition.

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Frank Lampard is a legend at Chelsea following his

Frank Lampard is a legend at Chelsea from his playing days (Image: GETTY)

But he insisted that Iniesta was the best of the lot when discussing his career with former Manchester United defender Gary Neville.

"Iniesta," Lampard said on The Overlap when quizzed on his toughest opponent. "He could go either way. Not many midfield players who play in that central area wanted to take you on too much, they wanted to pass so they could run.

"I've played great players, Stevie G [Gerrard], physically brilliant, but some of the time that he'd [Iniesta] open up and he could take you either way meant that you couldn't get near him.

"Him and Xavi when they played in that [Barcelona] team were something, something else."

Lampard clashed with Iniesta on 13 separate occasions for both club and country, winning just four times.

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Chelsea spent big in the summer under Thomas Tuchel (Image: EXPRESS)

Alongside Xavi, who's just returned to the Camp Nou as the new Barca boss, Iniesta forged a reputation as one of Europe's elite midfielders during his playing career in Spain.

Unlike Lampard and Xavi, Iniesta is yet to hang up his boots and is still playing in Japan for Vissel Kobe at the age of 37.

Since retiring in 2016, Lampard was the first of the trio to move into coaching, enjoying a successful year-long stay at Derby County in his first managerial role.

He then spent an 18-month spell in charge at Chelsea, guiding the Blues to an unexpected top-four finish and an FA Cup final in his maiden season in charge before things turned sour the following season.

Lampard has been out of the game since he was dismissed by Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich in January this year, despite being heavily linked to a number of Premier League jobs including Aston Villa, Crystal Palace and Norwich.

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Lampard named Andres Iniesta as his toughest

Lampard named Andres Iniesta as his toughest opponent (Image: GETTY)

And he revealed that his former boss at Chelsea, Jose Mourinho, cheered him up following his dismissal as Blues boss with a cheeky quip after the pair met by chance during the Covid-19 pandemic.

"I bumped into Jose in the streets around here just after getting sacked," Lampard added.

"It was Covid so he had a mask on and he whipped it off and before that when he was at Tottenham me and him were a little bit like that [at loggerheads] I'm not going to lie.

"He came over to me and gave me a big hug and said, 'Now you're a real manager.'

"I was like (thumbs up) cheers. But I loved it and that's the world we live in."

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