Chelsea manager Frank Lampard is delighted about Kurt Zouma's improvement this season.

The French centre-back has solidified his place in Lampard's first choice starting eleven as a centre-back partner with Thiago Silva.

And speaking after Zouma scored in the 3-1 win over Leeds United, Lampard said Zouma has been playing with 'more confidence and belief' this season.

“He has been playing well this season," Lampard told reporters of Zouma. "The eye-catching thing is the number of goals he is scoring from set-pieces and for me, that is a result of more confidence and more belief in himself.

"He has always had the size and strength, and now you see him in all parts of the pitch really - aerially he is a real threat and he is doing his job. I think a lot of the individual improvement or development, he had injuries and because of how his career went, he has been out on loan a couple of times.

"He trains every day, he doesn't miss a day, he wants to do extras, he wants to work, he wants to do better, and those things to me are just absolutely fundamental to how players improve. And at the minute the level he is playing at week in week out is brilliant and long may it continue - he deserves it.

"The way we are playing as a unit at the moment defensively, as a team, that obviously helps him raise his standards, and obviously with Thiago next to him, that is a great standard-bearer for the rest of the season.

"As a unit, we look stronger and Kurt has been a big part of that. A lot of defending is about concentration. He has got so many attributes that are great for a centre-back.

"I knew that when I came here that a guy like Kurt would be a big deal for me and he is showing that in terms of how he is playing. I am delighted with him."