Lampard: Hazard can be big for us

By ESPNSTAR.com staff

Hazard's protracted £32 million transfer saw him reject clubs like Manchester United, Manchester City, Real Madrid and Arsenal for Chelsea and Lampard believes that the Belgian attacker has made the right choice .

Having played alongside Hazard in their preseason tour in USA, Lampard has been impressed and lavished praised on the former Lille star.

"My first impressions of Hazard are very good," he told Chelsea's official website.

"You can see he is a natural in training with his touch, awareness and speed. The first time I saw him play in Seattle I could see he is player with a lot of natural ability.

"There are signs he can be a big player in Chelsea history if he wants to be."

Lampard also praised Marko Marin, another summer addition to the London club. 

"Marin is very enjoyable to play with. I have only played with him once or twice and he picks up great positions on the pitch and is very sharp. He is the kind of creative player we want at Chelsea to excite the fans."

Chelsea have recently announced the capture of Oscar and Lampard is buoyed by the sheer firepower at their disposal. 

"All the reports I have heard of Oscar are very good too and hopefully he can come and adapt to the English game very quickly.

"We have a few midfielders now who can play in areas where we can hurt the other teams, we have Juan Mata to come back as well [from the Olympics], so the future looks good for us."

With many midfield signings, the competition for a spot in the first team will be fierce but the England international is unconcerned.

"Every year it gets harder because every year we bring in players, but I remember being 25 and we brought in four or five midfielders one summer. I wondered if I would be in the team and I played about 60 games," Lampard noted.

"I have had a great career here and I wouldn't want the club to stand still. The club need to move forward and bringing in quality midfield players is brilliant."