Frank Lampard was relieved of his managerial duties at Chelsea on January 25th, 2021. He has dipped a toe back into the punditry pool since then, but no return to the dugout has been made. Lampard was left watching on from afar last season as Thomas Tuchel, the man that replaced him in a prominent Premier League post, delivered a fourth-place finish and Champions League glory. Undoubtedly, that would have stung a bit and conjured up feelings of what could have been.
A sense of serious deja vu has, however, descended on Stamford Bridge, with the current campaign following a theme that Lampard knows all too well. After promising plenty, the wheels have started to come off an expensively-assembled bandwagon.
Tuchel has some fire fighting to do in west London, with rivals from across the capital joining a keenly-contested race for limited seats at European football’s top table. Anyone looking to place a bet on the outright Champions League odds will find that Chelsea are presently priced at 10/1, whilst Arsenal are 125/1 and West Ham are 250/1.
A midfielder widely regarded as one of the best of his generation, viewed as a hero among @ChelseaFC fans and respected across the footballing divide
🔵 Frank Lampard is inducted to the #PLHallOfFame pic.twitter.com/EBZYOdVGjD
— Premier League (@premierleague) May 19, 2021
The Hammers are another club that Brentwood native Lampard knows well and he will have been keeping a close eye on the impressive progress that David Moyes has overseen in the East End. The Scot was once cast aside after flopping under the brightest of spotlights at Manchester United but has since bounced back in style.
Could a similar path be trodden by a modern-day great in 2022? The opportunities are out there, it is just a case of finding and then thriving in them.
What’s next for Lampard?
Former England midfielder Lampard has never shied away from the fact that he would like to cut his coaching teeth once more at the very highest level. He was heavily linked with a role at Newcastle following a big-money takeover at St James’ Park, while there was plenty of speculation to suggest that he was considered by Norwich before the reins at Carrow Road were eventually passed to Dean Smith.
Maybe neither of those posts particularity appealed, given the rebuilding jobs required in Norfolk and the North East, or maybe Lampard’s face did not fit for power brokers making important recruitment decisions behind the scenes.
Whatever the case, he remains out of work for now and very much on the market. You get the sense that the situation could change quickly over the coming months. In an era where immediate success is demanded rather than longed for, no manager is ever more than a few games away from getting the chop. That could very well play into Lampard’s hands as he waits patiently on the right offer. He has spent time in the Championship with Derby in the past and one step backward could be required in order to establish forward momentum once more.
#OnThisDay in 2018…
Frank Lampard was appointed as the manager of #DCFC! 🙌 pic.twitter.com/jMv35PQIAf
— Derby County (@dcfcofficial) May 31, 2019
His profile is, however, big enough that top-flight suitors should come calling at some stage. No bad job was done at Chelsea, with the Blues eased through a tricky transfer embargo, he was just unable to deliver on the loftiest of expectations.
Pressure will not be as great elsewhere and, having already spent time in America during his playing days, there is plenty to be said for allowing wings to be spread as a reputation is rebuilt away from the comforting surrounds of home.
