Frank Lampard believes the current Chelsea squad has the same winning mentality as the team assembled by Jose Mourinho. It is three years since the "Special One" guided the club to their last Barclays Premier League title but there are high hopes this season under Carlo Ancelotti, with Lampard rating the side as comparable to the best he has played in.
"It's up there," said the 31-year-old England international. "The first year or two, when we won the league with Jose Mourinho, was a fantastic team as a group and as individuals. We were rock solid and everyone could see that.
"What we've done now, with a similar quality in the squad, is get back to that real strong mentality. It's very noticeable in the performances we've put in, particularly against Arsenal and then when we've played the big clubs.
"There are difficult moments in these games but there is a real determination about us and it's very nice to have that spirit back. Hopefully it can take us back to winning leagues again."
Lampard is hoping that the diamond formation that served the Blues well in the first half of the season will still be successful with key players missing.
"It's a different formation and that has probably brought about a different style," he said.
"When you play with a diamond, with a lot of men in midfield, you have to try to play the ball through midfield and eventually get it up to your front two.
"We're trying to play a good brand of football. Because we are strong and can play both sides of the game people concentrate on how dogged we can be to get results but we're trying to entertain at the same time.
"The transition has been seamless from playing 4-3-3 for years, which was quite rigid."
