CARLO ANCELOTTI made a lasting impression on Frank Lampard — by getting a round in hours after being sacked by Chelsea.
It was last orders for manager Ancelotti in May 2011 in a corridor at Goodison Park where the two men will meet again tonight.
The axing of the genial and successful Italian remains the most baffling of the nine men to get the boot from owner Roman Abramovich during his 17 years in charge.
Lampard said: “He had a very laid-back demeanour about him which I appreciated. But beneath that was a hard edge, that was very evident.
“I didn’t crave too much conversation with my manager, I just wanted to do my job but with him I always felt comfortable when I was having those one-on-one conversations.
“I’ve got specific moments in my time with him that I remember. One was the evening that he left the club and he actually came and had a couple of beers with us in The Plough over the road in Cobham.
“Another time I was with Andrea Pirlo in Vancouver and we all had dinner together in an Italian restaurant and it was a fantastic evening.
“I have such high regard for him. He has the personal touch, he got it nailed.
“And the great thing is that he is straight with it. He is honest in everything he does and that is very refreshing.”
Ancelotti was sacked after a 1-0 defeat as Chelsea finished second in the league but trophyless — unthinkable in those days.
Lamps managed fourth place without a cup in his first season in charge which means there is added pressure now in his second campaign.
Ancelotti won the Premier League and FA Cup Double the year before he was axed and inspired Lampard to ultimately be Chelsea’s greatest goalscorer with 211 goals.
Lampard said: “I remember that season because I did not start very well.
“Carlo came in and we played in a diamond formation with me at the top of it, which on paper may have looked right but I was finding it difficult.
“My game was fluid and I wanted to get my chance to arrive in the box. I went quite a few games without getting a goal — and remember having an honest conversation with Carlo.
“He was very open with me and I remember being really impressed, not just because it meant my position changed slightly and I managed to start playing better but just how he handled what was a tough period for me.
“From then on the season went from strength to strength, so he got a tune out of the whole team.”
One of Lampard’s key themes is hard work — which is why he admires Everton striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin who has 16 goals for club and country this season having come through the ranks at Sheffield United.
Lampard said: “To speak about an opposition player is a bit different but what I do respect about Calvert-Lewin is that it feels like a career that he has really worked for.
“That sounds simple but it is not a straightforward pathway.
“Not everyone gets in their first team at 17 or 18 other than the Wayne Rooney and Michael Owen types of the world.
“Others have to find different ways and he has shown himself, last season and particularly this season, consistently he’s an all- round striker.
“Every part of his game is a real threat.
“When I look at him as an opposition striker, who has quite rightly got into the England team and he has settled into that, he is a major threat to us.”
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