Frank Lampard and John Terry to put friendship on hold when pair meet for Derby vs Aston Villa

Lampard and Terry regularly discuss tactics but will put their regular communication on hold

Frank Lampard and John Terry meet in the dugout at the weekend (Getty )

Frank Lampard and John Terry's regular hotline to one another has been placed on hold this week.

The former Chelsea fc and England pair still regularly find time to "compare notes" on their new careers in the Midlands, where Lampard has made a stellar start to his managerial career at Derby County and Terry was recently named assistant to Aston Villa's new manager Dean Smith.

Yet, with a dugout duel awaiting on Saturday as two of the Championship's leading lights go head to head, that longstanding friendship is on hold.

"We won’t be comparing any notes this week," Lampard says with a smile. "I would have no problem with that normally.

“We are tight, as is Jody with John. We have no issue with communicating.

"You don’t have to cut ties as friends or even to talk football with people - just because you work for different clubs.

"This week we’ve put it to the side, though."

It promises to be a compelling sub-plot within what already has the feeling of a pivotal game, especially for a Villa side playing catch-up.

Lampard, with his team fifth and having claimed 10 points from their previous four matches, is already looking comfortable in his new surroundings. In Mason Mount (who will be absent this weekend), Tom Lawrence and Harry Wilson he has three poster boys for the youth-inspired effervescent football he has brought to Pride Park.

Frank Lampard saw his Derby side suffer a disappointing defeat (Getty)

Terry, meanwhile, is only four games into his role at mid-table Aston Villa, with whom he came within one game of captaining Villa to promotion back to the Premier League last season.

Retirement eventually followed and now the 37-year-old has unfinished business at a club where the need to return to the England's elite division is becoming increasingly acute.

By Lampard’s own admission, the pair, who won everything there is to win during the most decorated period of Chelsea’s history, are “different personalities”.

“I think that’s why we were a decent match as captain and vice captain,” says the Rams manager.

Behind the scenes, Terry remains the epitome of the ‘Captain, Leader, Legend’ nickname bestowed upon him at Stamford Bridge.

His return has been widely welcomed at Villa, where his influence – both on and off the field – was sorely missed by Smith's predecessor Steve Bruce in the campaign’s early stages.

One message Lampard and Terry continually impress upon their players is the importance of a work ethic.

Terry posted a photo of a pitch-black Bodymoor Heath on social media upon arriving to his first day back – and has always placed high importance on extra time in the gym before training.

Aston Villa's management team of Dean Smith, John Terry and Richard O'Kelly were recently formed (Getty)

With the respect of the dressing room already in place, he is the ideal right-hand man in the dressing room for Smith and the reach of his powers of inspiration spread far beyond the first team.

Terry has long held an interest in nurturing young talent - a pep talk he gave to a certain Jack Grealish after a 2-0 Chelsea win at Stamford Bridge in the Premier League in October 2015 long before their paths were to cross again is just one piece of evidence.

Last season he regularly imparted additional advice and anecdotes to those keen to learn, recounting stories from games such as Champions League finals where he’s experienced the highs and the lows.

“I would have expected John would go into management – always,” Lampard adds.

"He is that type of person. Whether he expected me to go into it I don’t know.

"I do feel he has the attributes to be a top boss - hard work, influencing people around him, knowing the game so well from being a centre-back at the highest level for 20 years.

"There’s more to him than that, but in terms of the basics he has it all."

There is, of course, his defensive nous too.

Two clean sheets in Villa’s last two home matches – they had conceded five in their previous pair of outings at B6 – point to improvement.

The form of Axel Tuanzebe, on loan from Manchester United, has markedly improved in recent weeks, while James Chester gave his best performance of the campaign against Bolton Wanderers last week, looking more like the defensive lynchpin who performed with such consistency alongside Terry last season after an uncharacteristically shaky start this term.

Frank Lampard has had a great start to his managerial career (Getty Images)

Lampard no doubt, has had a similarly inspirational impact – both on players and supporters.

As one seasoned Rams observer puts it, “the place was in need of a lift.” County, like Villa, had lost in the play-offs and, similarly there were reservations over their playing style.

While Gary Rowett’s defection to Stoke City came as a surprise, it provided an opportunity to start afresh. Lampard was something different. Unknown. Exciting. It has proven exactly that.

Respected yet popular in the dressing room, he too is adept on the training ground, where he combines coaching responsibilities with the highly-regarded Jody Morris and Chris Jones, both of whom arrived from Chelsea.

“It’s very constant, 24 hours a day,” Lampard says. “The change from player to manager is massive – the hours, the responsibility is huge. But the fulfilment and enjoyment is as much if not more.

“I am always very driven and look to the next thing so I don’t have too many moments to enjoy it.

“I will enjoy it when we are hopefully successful at the end of something rather than mid-season.”

It is a mentality made in Chelsea - now, like Terry's, starting to bear fruit over 100 miles north in the Midlands.