Ethan Ampadu: Leipzig teen hopes to impress Chelsea boss Frank Lampard
- Published
Ethan Ampadu's father Kwame Ampadu was also a professional footballer
Ethan Ampadu is hoping to impress Chelsea manager Frank Lampard by helping RB Leipzig achieve their goals.
The Wales defender is on a season-long from Stamford Bridge and after a defensive crisis has found himself finally getting some game time.
He impressed in Leipzig's 1-0 win at Tottenham in the Champions League last 16 first leg, just his second start.
"I would like to go back [to play for Chelsea], I aim to, but I am focused on Leipzig," he explained.
"I am always watching Chelsea and seeing what is going on.
"It is good to see the young players are shining at the moment. They are in the top four so fingers crossed they can hold on to that."
Julian Nagelsmann's young side have impressed this season, topping the German league for much of the campaign and currently second behind powerhouses Bayern Munich.
Ampadu has noted that youngsters are getting a chance at Chelsea under Lampard, with the likes of Tammy Abraham, Mason Mount and Reece James all featuring regularly.
Ethan Ampadu is a regular for Wales, playing in both central defence and central midfield
The 19-year-old, who made his debut for Exeter City before he did his GCSEs, wants to be part of that youth movement next season and know the best way to impress Lampard is helping Leipzig with their league and Champions League ambitions.
Despite a couple of shaky moments, Ampadu performed excellently in helping his side to a narrow victory at Spurs in a performance that heartened Chelsea and Wales fans, with Ampadu almost certain to feature at Euro 2020.
Ampadu was pleased to get the chance to impress in only his seventh Leipzig appearance.
"I have not played as much as I would have liked to but I am definitely learning in training and working hard," he said.
"When this situation came of starting [in the Champions League] I knew it was a good opportunity to show what I can do and I'd like to think I've done that.
"I just tried to play my game. I try to be composed and just try to play. We won the game and played well as a team. That is what we practised for, that is what we prepared for so I am glad it came off.
"[Spurs manager Jose] Mourinho said it, the quality of our play might go under-rated because people might not know the name of Leipzig so much but hopefully people saw that we have a lot of quality."