Chelsea

The 32-year-old has been out of action for a month and has not played since the Blues beat Stoke 2-0 in their third Premier League match of the season.

In his absence, the Stamford Bridge outfit had maintained a 100 per cent record until Saturday’s 1-0 reverse at Manchester City saw them drop points for the first time this term.

However, with Manchester United failing to secure all three points at Bolton and Arsenal being beaten by West Brom at the Emirates Stadium, Chelsea are still top of the league with a three-point lead over the Red Devils.

Lampard has been a vital part of Chelsea’s success over the past few seasons with his ability to score vital goals from midfield and fire accurate passes to create goal-scoring opportunities for the club’s array of attacking men.

But he was forced to go under the surgeon’s knife to correct a hernia problem four weeks ago and will play no part as Chelsea host the French side on Tuesday night, before welcoming the Gunners to west London on Sunday.

The Premier League will then take a short break as international football returns to the calendar, with England facing a crucial Euro 2012 qualifier with Montenegro and Ancelotti does not believe he will be fit enough to play for the national side (England 9/1 to win Euro 2012).

“He can’t play on Tuesday. We need to have more time than we expected for his rest,” he said. “In a few days there will be an international break and he will be ready for the first game after the break.

“He didn’t play with us so I don’t think he is able to play for the national team.”

Lampard’s team-mate John Obi Mikel feels that Chelsea do have enough strength in depth to cover for the loss of the experienced Lampard but he admits they would much rather have him in the side.

“There are other players who can do a similar job to Frank but it is a massive loss to the team,” he said. “I think we are coping well without him, but he is a fantastic player and we can’t wait to have him back.”

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