UCL: I'm not here to criticize them - Lampard defends two Chelsea players

Interim Chelsea boss Frank Lampard has defended two of his players, Raheem Sterling and Joao Felix after the pair were criticized following his side's 2-0 defeat in the UEFA Champions quarter-final first leg League against Real Madrid.

Chelsea face an uphill battle to qualify for the Champions League semi-finals after losing to Real Madrid at the Bernabeu on Wednesday night.

Lampard opted for a 3-5-2 formation which saw Sterling and Felix paired up in attack.

However, both players were isolated and unable to score for Chelsea against Los Blancos.

But Lampard believes the match was difficult for Felix and Sterling, insisting he is not ready to criticize the forwards.

"I think the match between Raheem and Joao Felix was difficult," Lampard said in his post-match press conference.

"In the system we played, defensively, they had to do a lot of work and their main threat can sometimes be counter-attacking or protecting the ball.

"And it was a tough night for us, I think, at the top of the pitch.

‘But Joao is a great talent, just like Raheem.

“So I'm not here to criticize or comment too much. We are going to go and analyze that side. '