Derby County manager, Frank Lampard was clear to point out what cost his side a place in the Quarter-Final of the FA Cup
The thing that cost Derby was their first-half performance: “First half we were slow and lacked urgency and to come to a Premier League side and give them time on the ball is a cardinal sin.
"After the first 15 minutes we had decent control in our half, but In terms of possession."
Lampard on Cole
One person who Lampard was very complimentary of is Ashley Cole. The full-back made his eagerly awaited debut as a second-half substitute and put in a great performance and Lampard was happy for him: “I’m delighted for Ashley, he has been training well, but he wasn’t quite ready 90 minutes.
"But that was a great exercise to give him 45, I thought he was calm and assured on the ball and obviously he has got all the experience of the career and then he got his goal”
Lampard was very surprised that Cole was that far up the pitch for the goal: “I was slightly surprised at 38 he could comfortably kick back.
"So to be that high up the pitch and get his head was a big surprise."
Lampard surprised by the first-half performance
The Derby manager was even more surprised by the first-half performance considering the cup scalps they have got this season: “ It was a surprise. The message was clear before, we have to come here confident.
"I don’t think we were really confident and comfortable on the ball, but the real problem was how aggressive we were off the ball."