I think it's pathetic that people are even debating whether he is a hero or not. Like so many of us he lost someone he loves and got on with his job, fair play I respect that but it doesn't make him any more of a hero than you or I. Comparing levels of bereavement is just plain wrong & disrespectful

Will, Surrey, England

The best way for people to deal with the death of a loved one is too keep busy. Playing football doesnt make him a hero, either does taking the penalty, however it is obvious he was very close to his Mum and I hope he gets over his lose as quickly as poss.
Not a hero, just a normal person.

david b, stockport, england

Martin, spot on.

Taking the ball from Ballack who has missed just once in his career from the spot and send the keeper the wrong way was astonishing. If the pressure of the game was not enough all ready, the weight of the world (and the eyes) would of been on Lampard.

People are short sighted!

Alexander, Sydney,

When lampard took that penalty and scored, you could see the carthartic effect it had upon him in moving his grieving process on and it also showed just how much football means to him. Its an unpleasant aspect of English people to need hate figures. Frank is easy to hate for the jealous.

John , london,

well, ladies and gentlemen: i have found out that we are in an era when you do your best individuals criticize you and say you should have done beyond that; and when you do perform badly, some people would say you can't get better as a result of your incapacity to live their norm . Frank faces it.

Rotimi Akindele, Chicago, United States

Lamps is a great player and a great servant to our club. WHU fans hate him because of his comments about them as a result of their treatment of him. 'Pool fans hate him because he threatens SG's position for England. Other fans hate him because when they try to wind him up, he fights back.

Keith, London,

Reading the comments below is really quite sad. It seems that, as with so many issues today, people just want to hear what they already believe.

Mr Samuel's has answered the posts logically and lucidly and provided solid evidence in support of his points. Yet no one wants to engage intelligently.

Alex, Oxford, UK

Lampard is a good club player and is the only purveyor of the
late run (a lost art).
The trouble with all the 'golden generation' is they talk like they are the best ever, when actually in a different era they would be ordinary. FL's England goalscoring record is way back for a midfielder.

ajctc, London,

No final ball? Did you not see the pass to Malouda yesterday, and also the one before that that opened up the play on the right. If I recall there was a pass to Joe Cole against Liverpool, opening up our defence.I'm a Liverpool fan and still readily admit he is a class player!! Formation helps thgh

Mohamed Negm, Slough, England

I think every person in the country felt the emotion when that penalty was taken, but in no way do I think that elevates Lampard as a player. It was a brave act for certain however I feel it is very weak to rate a player upon one act. Need we forget Milan Baros won the golden boot in Euro 2004.....

Luca, Milan, Italy

Martin Samuel. I'm sure, like me, many people used to respect you for being a good journalist with unbiased opinions. Yet recently all you seem to harp on about is Chelsea and Frank Lampard. Why you see the need to bring this up again is suprising.

Please stop the Chelsea/Lampard love in!

john terry, london,

Good article. One point you forgot to make: one of the main counter-arguments is that 'lots of people go back to work soon after bereavements'. However, these people do not then have to deal with such pressure, watched by millions, with millions of pounds riding on whether they succeed or fail.

Andy, London,

When can we expect your hagiography of St. Frank of Stamford Bridge?

P.Sharkson, Manchester,

I think George of Denstone's point is the key one. No one denies he had a terrible loss and performed well under emotional pressure. But it is the way Chelsea have turned this into a media circus to gain support for their club that rattles me. Another low by the classless cockneys.

Michael, Portsmouth, UK

If i hate Lampard, doesn't mean I don't respect him. I know what he can bring, and he doesn't bring it often enough. Just ask all those England supporters who won't be jetting to Austria and Switzerland for the European Championships. He seems more like a Chelsea player than an English Player.

Micky, Brisbane, Australia

I'm not Lampards biggest fan but even I was genuinely happy for him on Wednesday! However that does not mask his short-comings as an all-round midfielder! Lampard is a good player but he was never the third best player in the world and is not even the third best midfielder in England!

Simon Arneaud, Hampshire, England

I think your fist is full of the wrong end of the stick in regard to the penalty against Liverpool. Most of the opprobrium was quite rightly aimed at the over the top eulogies of the press, Bravest act for decades? - claptrap! This is bravery: http://tv.jubii.co.uk/channel/iLyROoaftSl1.html

Mike Barrett, Norwich,

I agree Lampard's a great player, but Gerrard is slightly better in just about every category. The evidence suggests that the two don't play well together for England, so I'd prefer to see Lampard as a substitute for England. That opinion doesn't fit into your "extremes" litmus paper model.

Philip, London,

I'd like to add that I'm a West Ham supporter and I don't hate him in the slightest. He is a good player, but this article isn't about him really, is it? It's about the polarizing opinions that sport provides. Martin's responses are quite juvenile.

Chris, Worthing,

lampard is a good player and anyone would feel sorry he lost his mum. but the hammy armband kissing and eyes to heaven we can do without. must be chelsea's overacting classes. we can also do without the heroism hype. it wasn't so unusual. we know you love frank, martin. just get a room, eh?

jem, london, uk

"As for Lampard, no one seriously disputes his talent. It is just that he is so highly strung and precious that it's hard to respect him." James from Tokyo says it perfectly.

As for this articles, the first 2 or 3 points are attacking people via points of spelling or assumption. Poor reporting

Jon, Liverpool,

If he has so much respect for the player, why not congratulate him on scoring at such a difficult time and then drop it? Nobody would have disagreed. Instead, he turns it into another over the top rant about his own opinion and why everyone else is wrong. This isn't about you, Martin

Sophie, Liverpool,

I lost a lot of respect for Mr Samuel while reading this article.

He seems to think that his opinion is hard fact and that everybody else is wrong/jealous/bitter etc.

T Jeanes, London,

So Franks got balls. Good for him. But lets not pretend he's the b all and end all. He's a class player in a team of class players. He works hard but he's no Kenny Dalglish !!

Jimmy, London,

Hate Lampard? You have not quite got a handle on hate. Why is football both trivial and insidious; because you can attribute such facile sentiments to it? Hate might be good shorthand for a journo with the editor breathing fire about column inches but it’s a word best buried. 'Hate', 'gay', waste.

Malcolm Turner, Alsager, England

This was an isolated incident in which Frank Lampard put a selfish desire to make a personal point about his mother above the good of the team. He was less likely to score than Ballack, and so took on the extra responsibilty unnecessarily. I wonder what the reaction would have been if he had missed?

Jimbob, Chelsea,

Frank Lampard speaks to Martin Samuel exclusively and Martin Samuel becomes his biggest fan. That's how newspapers work and it's nothing to do with objectivity. Plenty of people think Lampard is a good player but not as good as Martin Samuel would have you believe.

Steve Murray, Bedford,

Lads, lads, calm down. I think MS's point is that higher the stakes, the bigger the pressure - in this case, whatever you think of Lamps, there was quite a lot of personal and proffessional pressure. More than, say, boiler room watch duty in the Royal Navy or a Sunday kickabout with Enfield Reserves

Richard Hallward, Warsaw, Poland

Staggering comments from supposable footy fans. Lampard is a great example (and a credit to his parents) to any young child wanting to be a premiership football player. A talented, hard working team player and off the pitch, polite and articulate. I wish we had more FL playing. Man U fan.

Molly, welwyn, uk

The day the English will realize that Frank Lampard is their best central mid-fielder is the day they will win something!

michael lwoyelo, MANCHESTER ,

Love him or hate him, Frank is a great player. I remember my prejudice being exposed during Chel-Barce a few years ago when he scored THAT goal from the by-line. I still dnt like him as I see him as arrogant and playing for a matching club, but he is a good player.. banter is banter end of the day

Gus, London, England

well, ladies and gentlemen: i have found out that we are in an era when you do your best individuals criticize you and say you should have done beyond that; and when you do perform badly, some people would say you can't get better as a result of your incapacity to live their norm . Frank faces it.

Rotimi, Chicago, United States

The problem with Lampard is that he butchers so much decent possession in the final third of the field with his obsessive shooting...95% of which don't result in goals.
He gets in great positions but has no "final" ball, blowing many great attacking opportunities where others are better positioned.

Matthew, London,

How many goals has Lampard scored without the aid of a deflection? Not in Stevie Gerrard"s league.

derek, padiham, england

Martin, it's just too easy to say that all who critisize Lampard hate him. I don't hate him, ok ? But I do hate the pathetic exploitation of this private fact. I'm surprised that this does not sicken you. For once, you really fell in the trap. Big time!

pat, paris, france

Absurd. Slating Simon's statement because he misspelled Jonny Wilkinson! Weak.
Lampard is NOT a hero. He is a footballer who took a nice penalty. There is no courage here - he went to work. He did his job. End of story.

John, Philadelphia,

Lampard is a good footballer, but not that good.

Less than a year ago, Rijkaard implied that Lampard wasn't good enough for Barcelona.

For all the "goals from midfield, etc ", i remember Capello attempting to coax Scholesy out of retirement to improve the way England play.

Ade, Manchester, UK

I as actually a bit disturbed at the show of histrionics lampard engaged in after the goal. I think there should be a quiet respectful way to morn a loved one.

Deco, Aberdeen, Scotland

What a shame for this obnoxious man that Wayne from Liverpool is an Evertonian.
On the Lampard issue. If the death of his mother was to make the task of taking the penalty any more dificult, then the responsible, professional thing to have done would've been to have let ballack taken the penalty

Mal Evans, Huyton,

I agree with your praise of Lampard's contribution to the second leg, and football in general, but the tone of this column is quite offensively arrogant.
As for Lampard, no one seriously disputes his talent. It is just that he is so highly strung and precious that it's hard to respect him.

James, Tokyo, Japan

I have to say that this article is spot on;
I think Lampard is quality and I support United!

For me his passing, vision, workrate, goalscoring and ability to run a game make him the nearest thing to a Paul Scholes in world football at the moment.

Lampard and Carrick for England!

Mike, Sheffield, England

You might do the man a favour by not jubilating all of his actions into a divine intervention into football. Week in week out EPLbigshots get their superstar-bonus for actions other players get no recognition for whatsoever.
Perhaps he gets more real if the media treats him like a real person

Ilja, Sliema, Malta

The coach of Barcelona last year described Lampard as 'an arriver, not a creator' and he's right. Lamps is very good at timing his runs from midfield. Where he doesn't quite measure up is at the very highest level when asked to play a creative role for England. Not his fault - horses for courses.

Adam, Eastcote, London, UK

Martin you are hardly taking the best points made from the comments. It was supposed to be a match report about a match watched by millions because it was a huge sporting occassion. Praise was due for Lampard but in a comment section like S Barnes'. Your piece told me nothing much about the game.

Dave Williams, Beijing, China

It's a shame we only have 300 characters, as in my last post I would have liked to have added that I agree Lampard is a diamond of a footballer and comes across as a good role model. From a Liverpool fan.

Dave Williams, Beijing, China

As a United supporter and someone who isn't overly fond of him I personally wanted it for him. He showed his class and took the shot, when the occasion could have gotten too big for him, gaving the kick to Ballack. We should take this in context for what it is and not compare it to anything else.

Micky, Brisbane, Australia

Chelsea fan for 27 years and couldn't give a monkeys for England or their supporters exactly for little minded provincial attitudes like the ones above. For gods sake give the bloke a rest, he'd just lost his mum who he was incredibly close to. If you can't say something good about someone..

Andy C, New York (expat), USA

Alright then, if Capello thinks he's that good lets see if he starts with him. Notice how England's best performances in the qualifiers came when Lampard was not in the team.

Asher, London, England

It is warming to read an article tipping the scales in franks favour. I admire the guy for his commitment to Chelsea football club. Yes he gets paid a lot, that is because he is a great footballer. He is a great footballer because he works and trains hard, he is focused, he is dillegent. A legend

Jason, London,

People who "hate" Lampard do for one of two reasons.

(i) He is a fantastically effective player who plays for someone else.

(ii) He was the most promising new England player for years, then he just fell off the radar. There is a feeling that the man's best is kept for Chelsea.

pack rat, northampton,

Yes it took guts to take the penalty. However in committing to actually play in the match, Lampard decided he was ready for all the responsibilities that brought. Since he is the usuual spot kicker the possibility of taking a match defining penalty would have been included in his decision to play.

Claire, Dublin,

Dan Briggs states clearly what Samuel implies - "Lampard is a world class footballer"
He is a very good Premiership footballer who can occasionally have a great game - just like Gerrard.
Bur neither of them are world class footballers. England hasn't had one since Gazza.

R.Osmond, Hinckley,

Nice one Martin, i agree totally.

gabby, Madrid, spain

Yeah, I often hear "all his goals are deflections" and "that was a lucky shot" when Frank scores.

Hang on, didn't Ronaldo score a 'Lampard' goal on Saturday?

clivex, Bristol, England

Lampard deserves far more respect than he has been given by most football fans. He has worked tremendously hard to turn himself into one of the most effective midfielders in the world, despite not being the most athletic. He has vision, a fantastic workrate and a great goalscoring record.

Jason, Hove,

Even though i am a Liverpool supporter, i have always thought that Lampard is a great modern midfield player- he has a bit of everything in his game. Put it this way, if he was 5 years younger, the big clubs would be bidding silly money to add him to their ranks.

Martin, Liverpool, UK

I don't hate him but It's funny to see you dodge his performance in WC 2006 (25 shots, 0 goals) by talking about 04, 05 and the Champions League. The apparent master of pressure missed his penalty to compound an abysmal tournament. It's OK though because he was player of the the year in 2004 right?

David, Newcastle-under-Lyme, England

Martin I understand what you're trying to do. Lampard is one of the worlds best midfielders, and gained my respect when he took that penalty last wednesday. Were he not at Chelsea and in the shadow of the overhyped Gerrard, would he be liked then? Such a disgrace for a wonderful player.

James Baker, Ipswich,

usually agree with almost everything Martin says but to say you only 'know' football if you like Lamps is just silly. The reason people dont like Lamps is the same as Ronaldo and Beckham - the performances never live up to the press praise they recieve - the opposite of Messi!

Paul, London,

Martin

There was pressure because of the situation: the match, the consequences of a miss. Against this increased pressure, there was the likelihood of more public and team mates sympathy for him should he miss: his perceived bravery in the face of emotional turmoil. selflessness for the team cause

mark, Uxbridge,

Whilst I can't deny Lampard's bravery in playing and taking the penalty, I do not like the way Chelsea and Lampard have turned the bereavement into a psycological weapon. It is unsporting at best, and at worst is disgraceful. The same applies for the match against United, the loss should be private.

George, Denstone,

I read the comments posted on the site following the original article, and there were far more persuasive, intelligent arguments than those picked my Mr Samuel. For that reason I don't think he justified his opinion fully, as it is very easy to justify oneself against illogical incoherent arguments.

Stein, London,

As a Liverpool supporter, a part of me was wishing that Reina would save his penalty. However, when Lampard did score and he reacted the way he did, I have to say that I actually felt happy for the guy. That says it all really.

fairdes, brisbane, australia

Well done Martin, I think the issue is clouded by the lack of intelligence from some of the contributors.
The real problem for most is he never appears to smile, he and his fellow goal scoring celebrants rush to stand next to the camera posing like American swimmers . ( remember Atlanta )

Nick Dixon, Sutton Coldfield, England

Lampard's courage was amazing on Wednesday night. But why was there little recognition of how Rafa Benitez, similalrly battled through such pain in the World Club Championships? I think only a day or two before a match his dad passed away but yet Rafa stayed at the competition.

A.Khan, Leeds,

So, will he be producing a book about his part in Euro 2008?

Harley Wyatt, Brighton, UK

I admire Lampard just for playing.

In contrast Celtc postponed their Jan 2nd game against Rangers for a player who hadn't played for them for 9 years. Why - because they were rubbish, had players suspended & they wanted to sign players to prop up their defence in the Jan period. Disgraceful.

Scott, London,

Heroic for getting on with life and his job after losing someone close? There are a lot of heroes out there.

A hero for scoring the a goal? Wasn't it Drogba that scored the goal that won the game, isn't he the hero?

Adam, Brighton,

When he scored on Wednesday, you could tell the crowd were happier for him on a personal level than they were about the match situation. That says it all about the man. We who watch him week in week out at the Bridge understand his value in every sense. A true gentleman and a world class footballer.

Dan Briggs, London,