Frank Lampard not ruling out permanent Chelsea manager job after return as caretaker

Frank Lampard has not ruled out becoming Chelsea’s permanent manager after returning as caretaker.

Lampard has signed a short-term contract until the end of the season following the sacking of Graham Potter, having had discussions with directors Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart over the past 48 hours. The 44-year-old has been tasked with trying to lift the team’s ailing form and chart a route through the Champions League, with a looming quarter-final against Real Madrid to come.

“I’m not getting ahead of myself,” he said at his unveiling. “I want to do the best I can to impact the club in this period and we will see what happens afterwards.

“This is Chelsea Football Club. We don’t want to be in 11th position… For me it’s not about unfinished business. That sounds a bit Hollywood. I just want to work and help the club as much as I can.”

Lampard first became Chelsea manager in 2019 in what was only his second head-coach role following a stint in charge of Championship side Derby County. He led Chelsea to a top-four finish in his first season at Stamford Bridge and built a reputation for developing young players with Mason Mount, Reece James, Fikayo Tomori and Tammy Abraham among those who flourished.

But a lavish summer of spending backfired the following season. Timo Werner, Kai Havertz and Hakim Ziyech all arrived for significant fees and struggled to make an impact, and although Chelsea started the campaign well, they suffered a poor run of form in the winter which ultimately cost Lampard his job in January 2021, when he was replaced by Thomas Tuchel.

Lampard returns to an even more bloated squad after vast investment in the playing squad led by new American owner Todd Boehly, who first acquired experienced players for Tuchel and then brought in a raft of younger talent for his replacement, Potter, and one of the biggest challenges for the new caretaker will be choosing which players to use and who to leave on the fringes.

One player likely to be buoyed by Lampard’s return is Mount, who enjoyed success under his management at both Derby and Chelsea but has struggled for fitness and form this season and remains locked in prolonged contract negotiations with the club.

“I don’t know enough about it to talk abut it, it’d be wrong of me to delve into it,” Lampard said on Mount’s situation. “Mason has always been a fantastic player for me. It’s absolute pleasure to watch him go on and be huge player here.

“I know he’s had a few slight injury problems. I know what I get from Mason, I want to see him perform on the pitch. We have a good relationship, I look forward to seeing him more. I’ve been thinking about it a lot, speaking to people helping me, I have my idea of where I want to go. Credit to Bruno [Saltor, interim manager] and Graham Potter, a good man and a very good coach. Things sometimes don’t align. I have my own ideas.”

Lampard’s first task will be to take Chelsea to Wolves on Saturday for a Premier League encounter at Molineux, before turning his attention to Wednesday’s trip to the Bernabeu to face Real Madrid, with the second leg six days later at Stamford Bridge.

“I am not naive,” he said. “Real Madrid is a huge football club, the current Champions League winners. I am not going to sit here and make crazy talk about what may be, or think about a semi-final or beyond. It is step by step. The first year I was at Chelsea, we got through the group stage and lost to Bayern. The second year, I left and the club went on to win [the Champions League under Tuchel]. I am excited to be fighting in that competition because it’s the best.”

Originally published April 6, 2023, 6:14 AM