Derby County youngster Mason Mount has revealed Rams manager Frank Lampard has challenged him to make more appearances for the national side than the Three Lions and Chelsea legend.
The 19-year-old was speaking after his first senior England call-up from manager Gareth Southgate and admitted it came as a surprise.
“It is a very surreal feeling coming into the senior squad,” Mount said as reported by the Telegraph. “Being chosen for the England senior team was a surprise for me as I’m playing in the Championship.
“He’s [Lampard] obviously got over 100 caps so he said to see if I can break that. He’s given me loads of advice so far and I’m just trying to take it all in.”
Lampard had a successful England career, earning 106 caps and scoring 29 goals across his 15-year international career. This included playing in four international tournaments for the Three Lions, where he was apart of England’s so-called ‘golden generation’.
Mount’s call-up to the national side is more than deserved after his fantastic start to the season. After a second loan move from Chelsea, he has scored five goals for Derby, where they sit eighth in the Championship and await a fourth round Carabao Cup tie at Mount’s parent club.
However, he will play no part in the cup tie on 31 October, as Chelsea have reportedly blocked Derby’s special request to allow him and fellow Blues loanee Fikayo Tomori feature.
Although Mount has enjoyed a successful start to his career at Pride Park, he still has his sights firmly set on returning back to Stamford Bridge.
“Playing in the first-team at Chelsea remains the ultimate goal,” he added. “When the time comes to go back I want to go there and secure my place.
“Obviously the link between Chelsea and Vitesse Arnhem is a strong one and to play Dutch football was a good step for me, as a first year away from home.
"I would definitely encourage it [playing abroad]. It’s a different type of experience, and when you come back to England and play you have that different type of experience you can bring into your football.”
The Three Lions will first travel to Rijeka to play Croatia behind closed doors on Friday, before a trip to Seville to face Spain.
Source: 90min
