Lampard holds on to title dream

Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard believes his side are still ‘in with a shout’ of defending their English Premier League title.

The England international scored a second-half penalty in the Blues’ 2-1 triumph over league leaders Manchester United on Tuesday, and he warned that there was life in the champions yet – despite their 12-point deficit to Sir Alex Ferguson’s side.

“We can play much better. There were times at the end of last season and the beginning of this that our football was top drawer. It was probably as good, if not better, than anyone else in Europe,” Lampard told The London Evening Standard.

“Lately we haven’t been playing like that but we can get back to those high levels.”

“Does this victory help Arsenal win the title? If Arsenal keep winning, but that’s not a given either. United have enough experience to know it is a marathon and there is a long way to go.”

“But we don’t really care about anyone else. If we keep winning all our games, we’ll be in with a shout.”

Lampard defended team-mate and under-pressure striker Didier Drogba, with the Ivorian left out of Blues’ starting 11 against Fulham and United in favour of star signing Fernando Torres.

“His reaction to losing his place has been brilliant and it is a load of nonsense when people say he has the hump. It has been far from that,” Lampard said.

“He has been getting behind the lads, telling us to ‘come on’. He has trained with commitment and played with commitment as a substitute. It is nonsense to say he is sulking.”

“To have those three strikers at the club is huge for us in the final months of the season. They are three of the best in the world.”

Meanwhile, Manchester United are reeling from their dropped points at Stamford Bridge, but Michael Carrick assured their fans that they could bounce back and maintain their advantage atop the league.

United face Liverpool at Anfield on Sunday without central defenders Nemanja Vidic (suspended) and Rio Ferdinand (injured), after the former was red carded in the loss to Chelsea.

But Carrick said his champion team will be defiant.

“At the moment we feel pretty down, but we can move on quickly. We have to,” Carrick told MUTV.

“We’re used to doing that and we’re normally good at that, so hopefully we can bounce back again.”

“We have to get rid of this game, forget about it and move on. It’s obviously a huge game on Sunday and we’ll be ready for that. We have to be.”