Jody Morris Interview: Rosenior Under Pressure, Lampard’s UCL Future and Mount’s Chelsea Exit

Speaking exclusively with FindSisterSites, former Chelsea midfielder Jody Morris has given his thoughts on the Premier League, EFL and more. Featured image courtesy of Sky Sports.

The former FA Cup winner has discussed the future of Chelsea manager Liam Rosenior, the body language of his players during their dismal run and what they need to do to turn round their fortunes.

Morris has also spoken about Frank Lampard’s managerial success, Newcastle’s performance under Eddie Howe and the poor treatment of Mason Mount at his former club.

Q: Does Liam Rosenior’s future at Chelsea rely heavily on qualification for the Champions League next season? Would missing out on a top five place and the FA Cup see him lose his job?

JM: “If Rosenior was [Enzo] Maresca or any other manager that hadn’t come in mid-season or doesn’t already have a working relationship with the current hierarchy at the club, then I think you'd have to say, ‘OK, forget them.’ 

“Looking at where Chelsea were at the end of last season to where we thought they would be now. For me, the Conference League is a nonsense competition for a club like Chelsea.

"But actually beating PSG the way we beat them in the Club World Cup final, I've said it before, I think it's the best performance from a Chelsea team in a final for me, and it was against the best team in Europe. 

“After winning that, you're then thinking, ‘Right, let's kick on and let's improve. Let's not be struggling to qualify for the Champions League.’

“The Premier League has got another Champions League position and you can finish fifth, and it still looks like we're right up against it to qualify. You'd say if it was any other manager, maybe, I think you'd have to be thinking like that. Now, whether that means his job may be under threat, who knows? 

Liam Rosenior applauds the fans - Photo by Chelsea FC

“But like I said, I think he's got quite a lasting relationship with multiple people who are quite high up at the football club. I know obviously there was an interview the other day with one of the owners where he said he ‘thinks’ they're going to stick with Liam.

"I think it's a difficult question to answer because I think Liam is maybe slightly different to most because of his working relationship with them already.

“If they are going to sack him, what was the point of bringing him in? Especially if some of the reports are true that they might be looking at changing the recruitment policy, which I think is probably one of the biggest problems the club has had for the last few years.”

Q: Why do you think the recruitment policy has been such a big problem?

JM: “Well, just think for starters, if you're only going to sign players that are below a certain age, that gives you its own problems. Then you've got to look at the quality of players that we've recruited.

"I was actually talking about it with Scott Minto, and we couldn't believe that Manchester City had gone out and got Rayan Cherki and Antoine Semenyo for the same price that we got Alejandro Garnacho and Jamie Gittens.

“There are multiple examples of stuff like that that have come from the recruitment side. I think that would probably be one of the things that Maresca had to hump about.

"I think if you're a coach, you obviously are aware of the situation when you come into a football club.

"I'm sure the owners and people making those decisions are making the coaches aware, but it's a little bit different when you're working with players day in, day out, and you get a feeling or a sense of what the team would need to go to the next level.

“I think Maresca was hoping and looking for certain policies to change to move the club onto another level. At the moment, it hasn't happened, and previously it hasn't.

"They might need to change that policy, but you just hope it's not a little bit too late if we're not in any decent competitions, taking away the opportunity to sign top players.”

Q: Whose door would you put the problems regarding the recruitment policy at?

JM: “I'm not too aware of the structure, but obviously, you have to look at sporting directors. If there are other people making decisions, whether the owners are getting involved or not, I'm not sure if managers are part of that decision-making process.

"You'd like to think that they are, because for me, that's when everyone's on the same page. But as I don't know the setup, I wouldn't know whose door to lay that at.

“You can say what you want about the owners and whatever way they want to run the football club. Obviously, that's a lot of Chelsea fans' gripe, that they don't understand what's going on, and it is different from what the club’s been used to in the past.

“But as far as putting their hand in their pocket, you can't really moan about the owners. They haven't been shy of spending money, the biggest problem is spending money wisely.

"OK, they've had a couple of great accountants and great people that can help you sell a women's team to yourself and sell car parks and stuff, which I think has helped us out from a financial aspect.

“Otherwise, I really don't see how we’d continue to spend and recruit much more. The Club World Cup was an amazing financial boost for the club, then selling homegrown players.

Joao Pedro lifts the Club World Cup for Chelsea - Photo by Chelsea FC

"I'm not sure where there's much profit coming in from many players that we have signed in recent years. There's maybe Cole Palmer and Estevao at the minute who you could sell for a profit. Are you going to get a profit on anyone else? I'm not too sure."

Q: You touched earlier on Behdad Eghbali saying that he ‘thinks’ that the club is behind Rosenior. Is there a hidden meaning behind that?

JM: “It's easy to read between the lines when you read an actual quote. I haven't seen the actual footage of him being interviewed. You know what it's like though, once you see the video and the context behind the quote and the way in which he was speaking about the situation, some of the wording can be slightly misleading.

“Obviously, you'd never want to hear the words, ‘I think, we’re behind someone’ because that doesn't fill you with confidence. But we've also been sat here before when you've heard owners talk about how much they're behind certain managers and then it's not too long before they've moved on.

"Unless you're behind the scenes at the moment in those conversations about what's going on, then I think it's hard to predict.”

Q: Do situations like that create unnecessary pressure for Rosenior, when he already finds himself in a difficult situation?

JM: “In fairness to Eghbali, he's obviously speaking about a situation that he's been asked about and he's almost admitted to saying, we need to re-evaluate some things and we've made mistakes.

"I don't think that that's necessarily putting on pressure.

“I think you come under pressure when people start questioning what's going on when players on international duty all of a sudden start giving interviews, questioning certain things or when players are substituted and ignore staff members coming off the pitch.

“Or players taking themselves off the pitch with a bang to the ribs, leaving us down to 10 men against Manchester United, who score a goal. I think that creates pressure on managers.”

Q: What do you think of the body language of the Chelsea players on the pitch?

JM: “I don't think it's the first time that we’re going through a period where the body language doesn’t look great.

“We're obviously missing Reece James, who's the captain and can help lead from the front. But that's what I mean with Enzo Fernandez and Marc Cucurella, who are more experienced members of the squad.

"That's why you're disappointed with people like them when they're going away creating unnecessary noise around the football club when the most important thing is performing on the pitch and you just don't need those extra things.

“I'm sure it was frustrating for Liam, but banning one player and keeping one player available? I thought that was very strange. So obviously there's that element that doesn't help because it creates more questions that Liam's got to answer.

“I think there's been some unfair criticism delivered towards Liam, certainly at the beginning when he first came through the door with silly memes and people talking about certain things. But at the moment, there are certain issues he has had to deal with, which we could have certainly done without.

"When you're on a run that we're on, your only focus should be trying to get the results back to where they should be.”

Q: Is the fact that he hasn’t been taken seriously enough where it has gone wrong for him?

JM: “Was he top of the list of people that you'd think that Chelsea would be looking at signing or going after? Maybe not. But if you knew the relationship that the hierarchy had with Liam.

"You'd know that he's been working for Strasbourg and it looked a little bit behind the scenes that he was going to one day be brought in, it doesn't necessarily surprise people. Are you going to get people like Chelsea fans or pundits? Absolutely.

"But then, getting decent results and performing well can silence critics. At the beginning, I don't think we were performing great, but I felt we were getting results. I didn't see much of a change from Maresca's set-up and line-up.

"I think we were going from one half playing like a team that is really, really struggling to looking great in the second half, and that was something that's been going on all season. That's not something just Liam's had to deal with, that's what this group of players have served up all season.

“I don't think the performances were great even when we were getting the results, but now I don't think we're getting any results either. The performances are awful, we're not getting the results.

"When you add to that the question marks over players' body language or interviews and quotes that are being thrown out there, I just don't think it helps the situation. It adds to the angst, anxiety, and frustrations that the fans have been having all season. It doesn't help."

Q: What do Chelsea need to do for next season to be title contenders again? With players like Bernardo Silva on the market, do they need to be going after that type of experience?

JM: “I'm not sure that we'll be able to become title contenders next season no matter what we do, to be honest. I think we're so far off it.

"I think that bringing in some real quality characters and experience will certainly help the players that are good enough to be at Chelsea and the players that are maybe just underperforming and have the potential to go on and be better than what they are at the moment.

“I think there are certain players at the football club that I don't think it would matter who you bring in. I'm not sure that they're going to improve too much. I think those are the ones that maybe you need to move on.

"But certainly bringing in people like Bernardo Silva would be good, his performance the other day was absolutely outstanding.

Bernardo Silva at Manchester City - Photo by Manchester City

"That's all we've seen for nine years at Manchester City: Someone who is not big in stature, you wouldn't necessarily say he's physically unbelievable apart from the distance he covers, but he plays with pure intelligence, is brave as you like, is a great character and he's always available and turns up in big games.

"So would I look at a Bernardo Silva? Absolutely. But if I were Bernardo Silva, I wouldn't be looking anywhere near Chelsea though, and that's coming from a massive Chelsea fan.

“I think that's where the problem lies. We aren’t qualifying for the Champions League and if you're an experienced player, you want to see other experienced players coming through the door.

"So whether there's a domino effect, whoever the first person through the door is will have to be a brave person because if you don't get Champions League football then I'm not sure many will be following.”

Q: Who would be the players that you'd be looking to move on?

JM: “It would be out of order for me to name players who should move on, as I'm not in a position to. But there are certainly players who have been at the club, bought for a lot of money, who have been nowhere near good enough for us.

"Some have already been moved on, perhaps out on loan or hardly ever play. You can see this from the outside, but singling out any names when I think there's a good amount of them would be wrong of me.

“It's not one or two players, there are a good few. Replacing them with quality, experience, and character is super important. Character and personality amongst this group is what was needed to get us away from where we've been, I think, all season.

“But I think trying to challenge for the Premier League is a huge, huge step at the moment. It's not to say it's impossible, but it's a gigantic step that I can't see us doing in one transfer window.

"It's also questionable whether we'll even be able to move people out the door. I'm not sure these owners, who have been putting their hand in their pocket and spent so much money, will be able to recoup anywhere near what they shelled out on some of these players.”

Q: If Chelsea did decide to move Rosenior on, who do you think would be the best choice to come in and replace him?

JM: “Listen, Liam’s still in a job, so I don’t want to sit here and start talking about other managers.

“But if you look at what Luis Enrique has done at PSG, he’s someone that transformed a group that people were asking questions about. Can they work as a team? Can they be humble? Can they work off the ball? Can they work relentlessly for each other?

"You only need to look at what PSG do and some of these players that are hugely, hugely talented, but we weren’t necessarily seeing their potential.

“You look at players like Ousmane Dembele, and what he’s transformed into under Luis Enrique is phenomenal. When you hear people talking about how Chelsea playing in the Club World Cup has caused so many problems for this season, we always knew we were going to get a lull and underperformance because we've had to play through the summer.

"Well, I don't see that happening at PSG. And these are players who work a lot harder than Chelsea work. So I'm not having that nonsense. I said it was nonsense at the time when people were talking about the Club World Cup being a hindrance.

“God knows how much money you had. Plenty of players over the years have had three weeks off, three-and-a-half weeks off when they've played in big competitions.

"Let's get it right, Chelsea in that season were changing the whole team to play in the Conference League, where they could play the second or third string team and still get to the final. So it wasn't really one of those situations for me. I thought it was nonsense, and I think PSG are proving it’s nonsense now.”

Q: There has been talk of Chelsea potentially moving for Cesc Fabregas after a good start to management at Como. Would that be a risk?

JM: "I'm a huge Cesc Fabregas fan. I think you only need to watch how he played the game to see that he's bright and intelligent. I loved him when he was a pundit, whenever he used to break down games and speak about players as individuals or teams.

"I loved listening to him, and I loved watching him play at Chelsea. He's done an amazing job at Como, truly amazing.

Cesc Fabregas unveiled as Como Manager - Photo by Como

“Again, I think Chelsea's biggest problem – and this is only if they are looking at a change – will be getting that type of manager. I don't see Cesc Fabregas having a shortage of options for other managerial jobs. I just don't see it.

"Although he's got a connection to Chelsea, played there, and played there extremely well, I don’t see him coming unless there was a change in policy regarding recruitment and perhaps a difference in the level of player that you get through the door as well.

“I don't think people like Cesc Fabregas are ever going to come to Chelsea – well not ever – but at the moment, his stock is extremely high, and I imagine he would have better options.

"Again, Luis Enrique is never coming to Chelsea at the moment, but if you asked me for the dream selection if they did move Liam on, then he would be the one. Just because I love the way that he's got a PSG team playing that was underperforming and had a hell of a lot of question marks over them."

Q: If Chelsea fail to qualify for the Champions League, will Chelsea face a fight to keep hold of Marc Cucurella, Enzo Fernandez and Cole Palmer?

JM: “Yeah, I imagine Chelsea will have a fight on to keep Cucurella, Fernandez and Palmer with no Champions League football. I imagine so because they've been here for a while now.

"We were only listening to two of them not too long ago maybe making insinuations that they don't know where they're going to be. And it's how it should be, really. I'm not saying that players should be jumping ship just because we don't qualify for the Champions League, but it's certainly nowhere near the improvement that a lot of people were expecting from the group.

"So if you are a player and you have short careers, can you blame people who want to move on?

“Now there's obviously an element of that that comes out of the player's door anyway. Have they performed anywhere near their capabilities? That's another question, but I do imagine that there would be multiple players who would be looking at maybe trying to get out the door.

"And that's just the problem that you have when you're supposed to be playing for a top team that's challenging and you've got players that may be in demand.

“The biggest problem for me is where you go, "OK, Cole Palmer is going to be a massive, massive asset. If we were ever to let Cole Palmer go, we're going to get a huge profit on what we shelled out for him."

"I'd love for them not to sell Cole Palmer because I think he's a world-class talent but I'm not sure that you're getting owners in world football that, as much as they'd like certain players, don’t think about the financial side of it.

"I'm not sure there's much profit in some of the other fees that we've paid and the money that we've shelled out on some of these players coming through the door. I just don't think the money is there for the level that we've paid for some of these players at the moment. So that brings its own problems.”

Q: Looking elsewhere on the pitch, the goalkeeper has been a bit of a point of conversation at Chelsea. With Liverpool evaluating whether to renew Alisson's contract, would he be the perfect addition for Chelsea in summer?

JM: "I certainly think Alisson is one of the best goalkeepers in the world. He has been since he's been at Liverpool. It looked like we were trying to get Mike Maignan last summer, but it didn't get over the line.

"I felt that a club like Chelsea should have been going for [Gianluigi] Donnarumma. It wasn't a lot of money and he's not old for a goalkeeper. I think he was around 25 when he was being touted for City.

“Alisson has been unbelievable for Liverpool. Probably the biggest thing with all of these managers and players that have done well at other clubs, is that it's going to be difficult to look at a club like Chelsea if you're finishing sixth, seventh, or eighth.”

Alisson Becker at Liverpool FC - Photo by Liverpool FC

Q: With Marco Senesi’s rumoured move to Tottenham, should Chelsea hijack the move and would they not be a more attractive proposition than Spurs currently?

JM: “It's not hard to be a better prospect than Spurs at the minute, is it? But listen, I don't know about Marco Senesi. I know he's played in the Premier League now for a few years and he's done well. But again, is that a massive jump in quality than what Chelsea already have?

"I don't know. He's certainly done well. Listen, you might want to nip in and nick players that you feel are going to maybe improve your squad. But I don't know.

“I think at the moment, when you're talking about centre-halves that have done great at Bournemouth, you look at Dean Huijsen, who went to Real Madrid, he was an outstanding footballer.

"I think you should be involved in those sorts of players who are going to all the top clubs. Like I said, you might want to nip in and nick those types of players, but again, is that the massive leap in quality that maybe the team needs?

“I think the players that you need to be looking at need to be ones that go straight into the starting eleven. Centre-back has certainly been a problem area for us, absolutely.

"We've signed so many centre-backs and then our best centre-half has been Trevoh Chalobah, the homegrown player that we had to pull back from Crystal Palace. So again, that is something that the club need to look at.

“The best centre-half in the league for me this year was a Chelsea homegrown player that we let go as well, in Marc Guehi. We should have been trying to get him back, in my opinion.

"I think most people say he's been the best centre-half in the league, and now look at what he's brought to the Manchester City team since he's arrived. So, going out and buying players is not necessarily always the way forward.

“But I certainly think that we need a centre-half and maybe someone that is good character, good experience, but I don't know enough about Senesi. I think he's done well since he's been there, but doing well at Bournemouth and then transferring that or transmitting that to a Chelsea team is a lot different.”

Q: If Spurs do go down, is Cristian Romero someone who could bring a bit more aggression to Chelsea’s defence?
JM: “But you want controlled aggression. OK, there's a lot of people that point to the fact that Cristian Romero played in an Argentina team that won the World Cup, but Chelsea have had enough problems with stupid yellow cards and red cards this season to last a good few years.

"I'm not sure Romero is the one that we need to be looking at. I think he's rash and can sometimes leave his team in the lurch and that's something that too many of our players have done this season.

“So personally, I wouldn't. He's done really well for Argentina, but I've never been fully convinced that he's the finished article centre-half.”

Q: Brighton tonight for Chelsea, is this a must-win for Champions League football? And could you also give us a prediction?

JM: “I think the Brighton game is a definite must-win. Just where we're at at the moment, we need to stop this horrendous run that we've been on. The fact that Brighton can leapfrog us and go above us tonight is astounding when you think of where they were a couple of months ago. Yeah, I think it is a must-win.

“Prediction-wise, I mean, I don't feel confident about anything that we're doing at the moment. We're even losing games against teams like Manchester United, who I thought were awful at the weekend.

"Little things, like Fofana going off the pitch unnecessarily with a slight rib injury when he wanted to come straight back on, are going against us. So, no, I'm not confident, especially as it's an away game.

“We need a win, so I obviously want to predict a Chelsea win, but Brighton are playing well. Right now, I'm more worried about teams like Brighton, Bournemouth, and Crystal Palace.

"I'm more worried about how far down we might drop than trying to catch Liverpool. We shouldn't be worrying about it, but given where we are, I'm more concerned about falling out of the top 10.”

Q: Frank Lampard has done really well to take Coventry City back to the Premier League, if he continues impressing will he return to the Champions League as a manager one day?

JM: “Frank [Lampard] will absolutely make it back to the Champions League as a manager. I think he's been the best manager anywhere across all English leagues since he joined Coventry, even not taking this season into account.

"He took them from 17th into the play-offs last season. I thought they were the better team against Sunderland and were unlucky not to reach the final. For them to then bounce back and be leading the Championship like they are now is a testament to Frank and the players.

"They've done an amazing job and rightly won Championship Manager of the Season.

Frank Lampard named the Championship Manager of the Season - Photo by EFL

“Having spoken to him since promotion was confirmed, they are now just focused on winning the league, which they deserve. Making sure they get over the line and become champions would be the icing on the cake to what has been a phenomenal season.

"Coventry used to be a Premier League mainstay when I was growing up, and they've found it very difficult to get back there, despite having some really top managers. Mark Robbins was very unlucky and did a great job there.

“It's phenomenal for Frank. It's the nature of football that he's going to be linked with all these Premier League jobs, and I think he'll definitely be back in the Champions League one day.

"Whether it's next season or not is another question. I think Frank's really happy at Coventry. Every time I've spoken to him, he loves it. He loves his group of players, and the fans have rightly taken to him massively. He has an outstanding relationship with the fans.

“The difficulty then becomes whether Coventry can give Frank the tools and opportunity to try and stay up in the Premier League. But again, it's one of those great problems you face when you manage to get promotion out of such a difficult league.

"It's amazing for Frank and his staff to have got them over the line. He's rightly being linked with all these big jobs. When you've been an unbelievable manager for 18 months in this country, whether it be in the Premier League, Championship, League One, or League Two, you're going to get linked with jobs at clubs higher than your current employers.

"He's rightly being linked, whether he goes anywhere is another question.”

Q: Having both worked together before, did you ever have the opportunity to join Lampard on the coaching staff at Coventry when he took over?

JM: “I would always, always be open to doing something with Frank. We were very close as mates for a long time and worked with each other at two different jobs.

"Then when I was trying to get managerial roles of my own, we went our separate ways. He added different elements to his staff at Everton, Chelsea and obviously now Coventry. He obviously doesn’t need me. Look how well they've done!

“When you have friends in football that you respect and you know that are very, very good at their job, why wouldn't you consider working with them? We haven't had that conversation and he hasn't asked me again since the first Chelsea stint.

"So, like I said, I probably don't see it happening. But if it ever were to happen, of course I'd be open to doing something like that.

“We're mates, have been mates for a long time and I value him as a manager. I've seen what he can do, I've seen the hard work that he puts in. But like I said, it looks like he doesn't need to change his staff.”

Q: Speaking of other people you’ve worked with previously, John Terry has been attracting attention as part of a consortium that could take over at Colchester United. Could you see him becoming the manager there and if an opportunity arose to work with him, how would you feel about that?

JM: “I don't see John [Terry] managing Colchester, if I'm being brutally honest. I think he's had opportunities to manage at the lower leagues, or maybe interviewed for jobs at League One level, and I don't think it quite suited him.

"Being behind the scenes and in control of decisions around a football club could be a little more suited to John at that level anyway.

“I'm surprised nobody has tried to get John in the door at a high level. But if he's involved in trying to change the fortunes of a football club with some backing, I think he'd do a really good job. What that entails, I have no idea.

"I've had a couple of conversations with him about it just from a mate's point of view, not from any other aspect whatsoever.

John Terry holds the Premier League trophy - Photo by Chelsea FC

“I think until any of that does actually get over the line, it's all speculation. Whenever you go into a football club, you need to evaluate what is already going on, what is already good at a football club, and what is working, compared to maybe what you can do to improve. You can't do that from the outside. You need to get through the door first, and you need to get your hands dirty.

"You need to get in amongst the staff, the players, and even the fans as well. You need to try and get as much knowledge and information about a football club as possible.

“I imagine that if that takeover or the new owners do get in, that'll be what they do first. You don't go into a football club and just think you're going to have a massive upheaval and change things.

"If there are good people who work at a football club, you want to keep those and enhance what is good. You can't do that until you get in and start evaluating the football club.”

Q: Looking back at the Premier League, do you think that it would class as a bottlejob if Arsenal fail to win the title given their previous position of strength?

JM: “I would never use the word bottlejob. I know fans love using it, I'd never use those words. Would you say that Arsenal have chucked the title away from being in an amazing place? Yeah. But unfortunately, that's the Premier League. 

“People love to have a pop at [Mikel] Arteta, but if you look at what Arsenal was like when he took over and how long it had been since they were challenging for a league title, it was an extremely long time. Now, Arsenal are one of the main threats every time the season starts. That wasn't the case before Arteta.

“Three weeks ago, or a month ago, a quadruple was maybe on the cards. If you had asked any Arsenal fan then if they thought they would come away with zero out of four, I don't think many people in football would have believed you. The two main trophies any Arsenal fan would want are the Premier League and the Champions League and they can still win both.

“Let's maybe not jump to conclusions yet, but if they do get to the end of the season with nothing, I think it would be the most disappointing season since Arteta has been there. This is just because of the position they put themselves in. They have so many good players underperforming recently, gifting points away, and not being anywhere near good enough in certain games. But they can still come away with one of the two biggest trophies in European football.”

Q: If they end up with nothing, could you see Arteta leaving at the end of the season, especially with the Real Madrid job potentially being open?

JM: “I'm not sure about Arteta leaving, he seems particularly happy. I know that he's got a huge amount of influence at Arsenal. When you look at people like him, Pep Guardiola and Unai Emery, I think they've got massive influence in and around their football clubs.

"I think sometimes you only need to look at the job Xabi Alonso did at Leverkusen and then to go in at Real Madrid and I'm not really sure the influence is the same. I think you've got to be careful what you wish for and that's from the Arsenal fans' perspective as well.

“I think it will be a huge blow if he left. You then have to worry about where they go from there because you can only see Manchester City being stronger than they've been this season because I think that they've added really well to their group. They're improving all the time.

“If they do manage to get either of those trophies over the line, then I think that would soften any blow of the other three trophies. If they manage to get both, then you're looking at a groundbreaking season.”

Q: If Michael Carrick gets Manchester United into the top five this season, does he deserve to stay on permanently as manager?

JM: “Michael Carrick has changed Manchester United's fortunes. They've been performing well, and individuals finally look like the players they're capable of being. We're finally seeing Kobbie Mainoo in the Manchester United team since he took over. He's done an amazing job.

"I thought they were really poor against Chelsea and they've had a couple of poor performances recently, but they still managed to get over the line.

“Carrick has certainly done himself no harm and is probably having a bigger audition than any of the other managers they might be talking to because he's in and amongst it with the owners or the hierarchy – the people who make those decisions.

Michael Carrick announced as new Manchester United boss - Photo by Manchester United

“Having known Michael Carrick a bit – I played against him and was on the UEFA Pro License course with him – he's one of the people I think you'd like to work with. He's bright, intelligent, always has the club first in mind, wants to improve players, and knows what it's like to be at Manchester United.

“I think he's done an amazing job and certainly done himself no harm. There are still a few games to go, but if you're talking about a manager who can finish third from where they were under Ruben Amorim, it could be difficult to look past him. But again, who knows?

“Some of these sporting directors or people at the club could have been speaking to multiple people they think might be better for Manchester United long term. Personally, I'd love to see Mike get it because he's a young English manager, and as I said, having known him a little bit, I think he's quality.”

Q: Can Carrick get the best out of Mason Mount and, if not, would you like Mount to come back to Chelsea at any time?

JM: “The only thing I want for Mason is for him to stay injury free. It’s been such a stop-start time for Mase at Manchester United that I haven't even started thinking about getting the best out of him yet. I think when Mace stays injury free, managers will play him and he’ll be involved.

“Whether that is to be at Manchester United or not, who knows? Sometimes when you've been at a place for so long and it has been so stop-start, a fresh start can be what's needed. But sometimes that fresh start can be a new season or a new manager.

“The way things ended at Chelsea and the way some of the fans reacted, even at the weekend when he came on as a sub, I hate to see it. I said that when I was doing the commentary for Chelsea. I hate to see it because the lad, I think, was treated poorly by the club.

“You’re talking about a lad that finished second to [Mateo] Kovacic in his first season as a Chelsea first-team player for Player of the Year, and then he won the Player of the Year two years on the bounce.

"Look at Chelsea's history, there are hardly any players that have won the Chelsea Player of the Year two years on the bounce, and he did it for the club while winning the Champions League and being the best player while we won the Champions League.

“He came through the ranks, playing with people that he played with since under-eights, under-nines, loved the club, and then got treated badly. I know Mase and his family really well and I know what went on there.

"So, I actually think that at this present time, it’s not there for Mase to go back to Chelsea. And I mean that from both sides. I don't think Mase would want to run back, want to come back to Chelsea after the way things have gone at Manchester United, and I also don't think Chelsea would be looking at him as well.

“But listen, far stranger things have happened in football, and who knows what could happen in the future. But like I said, I don't think that ended well for both Mason and the club at Chelsea, and it is something for me that shouldn't have happened.

“My only wish for Mason at the moment is that he can stay injury-free because he's a great lad and he's a top player when he's fit.”

Q: Newcastle have underperformed this season and if the club get rid of Eddie Howe as a result, could you see them going after someone like Jose Mourinho to get them back to the top level?

JM: “I think Eddie Howe is taking them to the top level. They've only ever once challenged for the title back under Kevin Keegan. They spent God knows how long out of the Champions League, and Eddie managed to get them back in there from a horrendous position when he first took over.

"He brought the club back together, the city loves Eddie Howe. He brought them their first trophy in what, 70-odd years or something? I think he's done an absolutely amazing job.

Eddie Howe celebrates - Photo by Newcastle United

“Now, you get new owners through the door that everyone thought were going to go out and spend money, and then they're absolutely snookered and can't do any of that. So I think he's done a great job.

"I wouldn't look anywhere past Eddie now, whether that means he doesn't move on, that's another question. But as far as getting them back to anywhere, I'm not really sure whether that's the case.

"Would you look at someone like a Jose Mourinho? I imagine someone like Jose would like to be able to use the funds that the owners would be able to provide, and they haven't been able to provide Eddie with that, so I'm not sure that that would change.

“Listen, Jose is one of those managers that I think will always attract interest from any top club because he's got bucket loads of charisma, personality, and he's got the job done at so many different clubs.

"For me, I'll be surprised if Newcastle try and look anywhere else other than Eddie Howe.”

Q: How far do you think Daniel Farke can take Leeds next season? Given the pressure he was under last season, where does keeping Leeds in the Premier League and getting them to an FA Cup final rank in terms of achievements?

JM: “I actually fancied Leeds to stay up, and I think it's so good for the Premier League that they do because the fanbase is absolutely phenomenal. Elland Road is such a passionate place to play football.

"When Daniel Farke was under pressure, you did worry for him, but I think he turned the corner really well. Leeds have put in some really good performances against some top teams – they absolutely battered us at Elland Road. “They've been a difficult team to play against.

"You only have to look at what they did against Manchester United at Old Trafford, I thought they were phenomenal then.

“Keeping them up is an amazing achievement. I think that was the biggest goal, which is what any promoted team wants. Then you start thinking, ‘Right, where can we build?’ Getting to a semi-final is very good, but in cup competitions, you can get a decent route.

"That's not to say they have had a decent route, they've performed really well. It's a fantastic day out for the club to go to Wembley again for a semi-final.

“But I think the biggest plaudits he will receive will be for the fact that I think another win will definitely take them out of the relegation battle. That'll be great for the Leeds fans, allowing them to relax a little bit with a couple of games to go.

“But after staying up, you'd always go into a club like Leeds and think, ‘OK, now where do we build and where do we try and move on again so we're not in another relegation battle?’ As we know, that can be difficult.

"You only need to look at Tottenham, they thought they were going to kick on and not be in another relegation battle, and look at where they are. It can be difficult.

“He's done really well. I imagine he knows himself that a bit of continuity with the players will stand them in good stead for next year. I imagine he would want to be able to add some new players so that they're not in a relegation battle again.”

Q: Looking at the Championship, who do you think will go up alongside Coventry and who will be able to then stay up next season?

JM: “I hate to say it, but I worry for any team that gets promoted about staying up. I think Ipswich will be the ones that go up with Coventry. They have parachute payments, good squad depth and Kieran McKenna has done it before.

“But you have to say that the job that Alex Neil has done at Millwall is absolutely phenomenal, it’s phenomenal that they've still got a chance of automatic promotion. OK, they've had a slip-up of late, but they've been absolutely phenomenal and what a job he's done.

"Then you look at the Southampton run that they've been on, it’s outstanding for them to get up there. So, I think Ipswich would be the ones that go up automatically, but yeah, you have to look at Southampton and Millwall at the moment being the ones that you could see winning the play-offs.

“But like I said, I'd worry for all three teams going straight back down.”

Q: What do you think Coventry need to give Lampard to help him stay up next season?

JM: “They obviously need to add some Premier League experience, but it's a fine line and a hard balance to strike. Frank, being among the players, knows best where they need to improve and add quality, but you want to add quality with Premier League experience.

“One thing Frank has always said since he's been there is that he loves the character and togetherness of the group and how well they play for each other. That's something you don't want to break up.

"You don't want to make too many changes that take away those influential voices in the dressing room that are the glue keeping the group together.

"For them to bounce back after the heartbreak of missing out on the play-off semi-final last year shows the character and personality they have, and you want to keep that intact.

Coventry City celebrate winning the Championship title - Photo by Coventry City

“It's hard when you try to add to a successful group because you don't want to upset the rhythm. We've seen it in the Premier League, teams that win the league add a load of players and then are nowhere to be seen.

"It's happened at Liverpool this season and it's happened at Chelsea before. Adding too many players can upset the rhythm and the cohesiveness of the group. It's about finding that fine balance of adding quality and maybe experience, without separating the group's mentality and togetherness.”

Q: A bit further down the EFL, one of your former clubs Swindon are challenging for promotion. Did you expect to see them do well from what you know about them from your time there?

JM: “Swindon are a big club for League Two. I think due to the size of the club, you're always going to be able to attract players.

“I felt during my spell there that it would have helped if I'd just had one transfer window to be able to bring in experience and a bit of physicality. We were the youngest group in the league and we were dominating games, but conceding goals from set pieces and in the last 10 minutes of games because we lacked experience.

“But in saying that, you don't want to take away the job that Ian Holloway has done, and I think he deserves all the credit that goes his way because he's been a manager for a long time, was out of the game for a bit, and then came back.

"I remember speaking to him at an LMA do at the end of last season about Swindon, and he was still just as passionate about going into work and doing the job at Swindon as he was when I maybe spoke to him about 10 years prior.

“I always love it when you get characters in the game like Ian Holloway and Neil Warnock going into football clubs and bringing their character and personality, and he's clearly done that at Swindon. I'll be delighted if Ian Holloway can manage to do something special at Swindon and get them promoted.”

Q: What do you make of the job that Paul Warne has done at MK Dons?

JM: “I played with Paul Warne for a little bit at Rotherham and I think he's been a very successful manager, particularly in getting EFL promotions. I think it was a clever appointment from MK Dons, if I'm being honest.

"Whenever you're appointing a manager, I think you want people who have a history in getting out of leagues, and he's done it multiple times.

“OK, it didn't quite go his way at Derby in the end, but I thought it was an astute appointment, and he's been doing a really good job. I don't think there'll be too many surprises if MK Dons get promoted as well.

"When you've got a manager who's done it multiple times, you'd like to think that he knows what the formula is.

Q: Looking at the promotion race in the Championship, Hull City are hanging onto a play-off position. How do you assess their chances?

JM: “Hull wouldn't be my pick to win the play-offs, although they deserve a huge amount of credit for actually being in there at the moment. I think you're looking at Millwall and Southampton, purely because of the kind of run that they've been on.

"I know Middlesbrough have obviously dropped off of late, but they looked in pole position to maybe be challenging for the automatic promotion spots six weeks ago when people were questioning Coventry because they had a little dip in form. But who knows?

“The play-offs can be a lottery, it's like a cup competition. Coventry were so unlucky last year, I thought they were the better team, but then you look at Sunderland being able to get past them and then win the final.

“Now, the job that the manager, players and recruitment team have done at Sunderland, you go, ‘What an example that is for anybody that is coming up from the Championship to the Premier League.’

Brian Brobbey celebrates derby winner for Sunderland - Photo by Sunderland AFC

"I certainly wouldn't have tipped Sunderland to stay up. That gives hope to whatever two go up alongside Coventry this year.

“Sunderland haven't been in trouble from the off, and they've been an absolute delight for the Premier League. You love seeing big football clubs with massive followings and passionate fans in the Premier League.”

Q: It’s been a patchy season for Swansea, but can their form under Vitor Matos provide a springboard for promotion next season if they can keep hold of Zan Vipotnik?

JM: “You've got to think about the three teams that are coming down straight away with these parachute payments. If Ipswich were one of the teams that maybe don't go up, there's another one.

"I think Sheffield United are going to be making big changes in the summer, Chris Wilder has already come out and said that. He's another manager that I love. I think Chris Wilder is brilliant for the game, he's been brilliant for Sheffield United. Again, he knows what it takes.

"He'll certainly want to get his hands on that group of players and maybe change quite a few. He already came out last week and said he knows what's needed. So you then look at a team like that and go, well, they're going to be better. So who knows? Do Swansea deserve credit for what's happened more of late? Yes, they do.

“It's such a difficult, difficult league. Any of these managers that manage to get out, especially without parachute payments and coming down from the Premier League with an already assembled squad that can compete, anyone that can get out of that league without that, that's why you look at Lampard and that’s why he's just got Manager of the Year.”

Q: Away from football, you stepped into the boxing ring quite recently. What was it that made you want to test yourself in another sport and is there anyone you would like to face in a second fight?

JM: “I did the boxing because I played with Graham Stack at Millwall. He told me about it, and it was for charity. Couple that with the fact that I'm a massive boxing fan, it's always been something that I've loved.

"I think it's the purest sport you can do, a one-on-one combat situation. I've got a couple of pals that are fighters and I've seen the sacrifices they go through.

“It was just something I thought, ‘Before I get too old, let me see if I can do something.’ I thought the training was incredibly hard. The training and sparring with some experienced boxers was a lot harder than the actual fight on the night. It was a great experience, raised money for charity, and that's all it was.

“It's certainly a one and done for me, I won't be doing it again unless there's an absolute gigantic payday that comes from nowhere, which I don't think is going to happen. So, absolutely not. I think it's a one and done. It was nice to get in the ring and nice to experience a sport that I've got such huge respect for.

“I hope that Stacky and Pro Project Promotions carry on putting it on because I think it's good for some of these former players to experience another sport. I think it's great to raise money for charity and to experience that with your friends and family on the night.

"It's totally different to what you're used to when you're a novice like I was, and like most of the lads were on the night that took part. Raising money for charity and any help you can get is all well and good.

“I'm certainly one and done, I’d like to finish my boxing career unbeaten. You know, there's a few of us out there: Floyd Mayweather, Terence Crawford, Joe Calzaghe. I'd like to finish among that group.”

Q: There's no one you had some battles with on the pitch that you’d fancy having a rumble with?

JM: “You have your arguments on the pitch. I'm not being funny, sometimes when people act the tough guy on the football pitch, it's mainly because there's a referee there. I mean, it wouldn't be quite the same if he was off the football pitch. So yeah, there’s not anyone I’d like to fight really.”