Chelsea have confirmed that they’ve parted ways with manager Frank Lampard today (Monday).
Lampard was appointed to the role in the summer of 2019, after a relatively successful spell in charge of Championship side Derby County. Chelsea were in a rather difficult position at the time. They were banned from signing any players that summer and had just lost the services of Eden Hazard.
Nonetheless, the Lampard weathered that first storm by putting his trust in youth, which resulted in players like Mason Mount, Tammy Abraham and Kurt Zouma getting a regular place in the team which finished fourth and qualified for the Champions League. But at the end of 2019-20, the club invested a vast amount of money in fresh signings (Timo Werner, Ben Chilwell, Kai Havertz, Hakim Ziyech and Edouard Mendy), and it seems they expected the team to be strong candidates for the Premier League title.
However, Chelsea won only three of their last 10 Premier League matches and are currently in ninth place. Their win over Luton Town in the FA Cup on Sunday obviously made no difference.
“This has been a very difficult decision, and not one that the owner and the Board have taken lightly,” the official club statement reads.
“We are grateful to Frank for what he has achieved in his time as Head Coach of the Club. However, recent results and performances have not met the Club’s expectations, leaving the Club mid-table without any clear path to sustained improvement.
“There can never be a good time to part ways with a club legend such as Frank, but after lengthy deliberation and consideration it was decided a change is needed now to give the Club time to improve performances and results this season.”
The man believed to be set to take Lampard’s place in the Stamford Bridge dugout is former Borussia Dortmund and Paris Saint-Germain boss, Thomas Tuchel.
