Frank Lampard has coached Chelsea before – with limited success
Those: AP/Steve Luciano
Chelsea are intensively looking for a long-term solution for the coaching position. While Julian Nagelsmann is considered the Englishman’s top candidate, a Spanish colleague offers himself offensively at the London club. For the time being, however, the club is relying on an interim solution.
BAs expected, Chelsea FC found an interim solution in the search for a new head coach. Frank Lampard is returning to the Premier League club as caretaker manager. The 44-year-old former English international will take over the club until the end of the season, as the eleventh in the table announced on Thursday. “The decision was pretty easy for me, this is my club,” said Lampard at his introduction. He associates many feelings and emotions with Chelsea and thanks the decision-makers for allowing him to train Chelsea again.
The British TV broadcaster Sky Sports had previously reported that Lampard had accepted an offer until the end of the season as manager after the online portal “The Athletic” reported on a basic agreement. Lampard was last at the stadium at Stamford Bridge for Chelsea’s 0-0 draw against Jürgen Klopp’s Liverpool FC. “We are delighted to welcome Frank back to Stamford Bridge,” said co-owners Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali in a club statement. Lampard is a member of the Premier League Hall of Fame and is a legend at the club.
After parting ways with Graham Potter at the beginning of the month, the two-time Champions League winner is looking for a long-term solution in the coaching position. Recently, the former Spanish national coach Luis Enrique and Julian Nagelsmann, who had recently been released from FC Bayern Munich, were in conversation. “As we continue our thorough and comprehensive process for a permanent head coach, we aim to present the club and our fans with a clear and stable plan for the remainder of the season,” said Boehly and Eghbali.
The 52-year-old Enrique, who last coached the Spanish national team at the World Cup in Qatar at the end of 2022, flew to London on Wednesday to negotiate with Chelsea boss Todd Boehly, the specialist newspapers “Marca” and “Mundo Deportivo” reported “. The Spaniard traveled to London with his agent Iván de la Peña. The chances of an agreement are not bad, assured “Mundo Deportivo”: “Luis Enrique always said that it was his dream to become a coach in the Premier League.”
From Zidane to Glasner – an illustrious group of candidates
English media, on the other hand, reported that Nagelsmann in particular is considered a top candidate alongside Enrique. However, the extended group of candidates is also more illustrious: former PSG coach Mauricio Pochettino, France’s ex-world champion Zinedine Zidane and Eintracht Frankfurt’s Oliver Glasner were also traded as possible successors to the unsuccessful Potter.
Lampard had already coached Chelsea from 2019 to 2021 and was then replaced by current Bayern coach Thomas Tuchel. Lampard then managed Everton FC and has been without a club since January. According to The Athletic, Lampard, along with his assistants Ashley Cole, Joe Edwards and Chris Jones, will temporarily take over the club from international Kai Havertz.
Lampard makes his debut on the Chelsea bench in Saturday’s league game at Wolverhampton Wanderers. Next Wednesday is the quarter-final first leg in the Champions League at defending champions Real Madrid.
