Chelsea coach Frank Lampard has hit back at Jose Mourinho after his former boss criticised his tactics in a 4-0 defeat to Manchester United on Sunday.

Mourinho made the claims on Sky Sports TV where he was a pundit during the match. He accused his old team of being “too soft” and “not aggressive” enough.

In response, Lampard hit back by saying he could not pick injured players.

The Blues missed the services of Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Callum Hudson-Odoi, and Willian through injury – while N’Golo Kante came on as second half substitute. Academy products Tammy Abraham and Mason Mount were handed surprise starts in the team.

“I don’t have to be too concerned about what anyone else says, the pundits, but what is clear is the squad is the squad we’ve got and I believe in it,” Lampard said, according to The Sun.

“I can’t drag people out of the medical room, whether they’re experienced or not. The players we played today, and on the bench, are the players we have.

“We were missing internationals and big players, but I don’t want that to be an excuse. We were competing for long periods.

“We made four mistakes and they put them away. It is a reality check for us all. It wasn’t a 4-0 game for long periods, but we need to accept it.”