Lampard back on track: Mourinho

Returning to Chelsea has put the smile back on the face of England midfielder Frank Lampard, according to Jose Mourinho.

The under-fire midfielder, criticised by England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson for not playing as well as he did last season, has shaken off the long face he sported following the shock loss to Northern Ireland last week.

Lampard was left down in the dumps, according to Mourinho, after being part of the England side that slumped to a disastrous 1-0 World Cup qualifying defeat in Belfast.

But the Portuguese coach confirmed that Lampard will be in his side tonight as Chelsea seek to kick off their Champions League campaign with victory over Belgian side Anderlecht.

And he added that a week with the Londoners had done wonders for Lampard’s state of mind.

When quizzed if he would consider resting Lampard against the Belgians, Mourinho replied: “Rest? Rest from what?

“He is playing well for me. I have to judge players on their performance with Chelsea – national teams are another reality. I have to make my decisions in relation to the way they play for me, not for their countries. I am happy with his performance.

“It is the beginning of the season, he is not tired and does not need a rest. He will play against Anderlecht.

“His mood is great. He arrived back not smiling because of the England result and not because of the criticism. After that, day after day, better mood, happy and working well. Life is bright for him. Football life is good, family life is good, so the boy is happy.”

Mourinho was revealed that skipper John Terry’s return to action against Sunderland was made realistic by round the clock treatment of his knee injury.

Terry first collected the injury during England’s 4-1 hammering by Denmark but this was compounded when Tottenham’s Michael Dawson fell on him during their Premiership clash at White Hart Lane.

The defender was sent back to Chelsea by England’s medical department after it was clear he would not be able to play in their two World Cup qualifiers against Wales and Northern Ireland.

But Mourinho revealed that it was the specialist treatment that helped Terry to reduce the amount of time he was expected to be sidelined.

Eriksson insisted that Terry would be out for at least a month but Mourinho explained: “The treatment was good. I think the relationship with the English national team is a help because the player was injured and they let him come back to have great treatment at Chelsea.

“He had treatment all day and even sometimes our medical people were going to his house after dinner to carry on with treatment.

“It was a bit of a risk to play him against Sunderland in the last game, but the reaction was good and he felt nothing.

“So he is completely ready and when October arrives he will be in great condition to go to the England team and help them against Austria and Poland.”

Meanwhile, Mourinho’s truce with UEFA will not stop him speaking out against Europe’s governing body if he feels there any injustice being shown to his side during the new Champions League campaign.

Last week UEFA were only to happy to grant the Portuguese coach a ’clean slate’ when Mourinho offered the organisation an olive branch during an interview on Italian TV.

But Mourinho now claims nothing would stop him from doing the same again if he felt there was anything strange he needed to address during any of their matches.

Mourinho was banned from the touchline for two games last season after UEFA accused club officials of lying over claims that Barcelona coach Frank Rijkaard and Swedish referee Anders Frisk were in collusion at half-time during the first leg of their clash in the Nou Camp stadium.

The outcry sparked by Mourinho’s comments led to Frisk’s resignation after he and his family received death threats from irate Chelsea fans.

But even while undertaking his suspension over two legs against Bayern Munich, Mourinho managed to antagonise UEFA’s top brass by instigating a row over the possible use of a mobile phone to relay messages to assistant Rui Faria.

Mourinho declared: “I won’t hold back. What I did last season was the consequence of something. So, if the competition is absolutely normal without anything strange, I would love that and I would love to be a good boy and to behave well.

“But if something strange happens, I have to do what I have to do. But the good thing is that the last season is over – finished. I am not suspended and I have no regrets. We can start from zero – this is a new competition for me.”