Frank Lampard had certainly imagined his reunion with Chelsea differently.
Back where he shone for thirteen years (2001-2014) and 648 matches (211 goals), the former midfielder was sacked in the middle of his second season as the club's coach.
After a first positive experience on a bench in Derby County, punctuated by a failure in the final for accession to the Premier League, the former British international joined Chelsea in the summer of 2019. A year and a half later, he was dismissed by the London club, which points to an anonymous 9th place in the Premier League.
“It's a very difficult decision, already because I have a great relationship with Frank but also have the deepest respect for him.
He is a man of great integrity and a great professional.
However, under the current circumstances, we think it is better to review the management, ”said Roman Abramotivch, owner of the club, in a statement.
Chelsea Football Club has today parted company with Head Coach Frank Lampard.
- Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) January 25, 2021
Back with great fanfare with his long-standing club, “Super Frankie” was impatient to tackle a great challenge while the club, banned from recruiting, was subjected to a real austerity cure.
With his "Baby Blues", Frank Lampard had finally managed to hoist his people into the top 4 of the Premier League at the end of the season, synonymous with qualification for the Champions League, despite the abyssal void which separated them from the champion Liverpool (33 points).
Lampard's best as a Chelsea player (2001-2014)
250 million euros invested ... The failure of the transfer window is also his
The end of the season was less encouraging, with an elimination without a fight against Bayern Munich and above all a defeat in the FA Cup final against Arsenal, the hated rival.
The news was then placed under the sign of renewal, while Chelsea and its owner Roman Abramovich, restrained for more than a year, returned to their expensive tradition by spending some 250 million euros on the summer transfer window, including 133 million on the two Germans Kai Havertz and Timo Werner.
Insufficient, the duo is in check.
And it is also that of Frank Lampard, who pays the backlash in Leicester last Tuesday (2-0).
A match that the most expensive rookie of the summer Kai Havertz (80 million euros), back after a month spent on the bench, walked like a ghost.
While Timo Werner is going through an inexplicable period of scarcity (1 goal in 16 matches), when Olivier Giroud is content with less prestigious matches.
Clearly, the mayonnaise never took, despite promising results early in the season, when Chelsea were among the domestic title contenders.
11 points now separate them from Manchester United, leader, and recent performances hardly invite optimism (one victory in five matches).
Thomas Tuchel approaching
"He is one of the legends of this club and his status here will never be questioned," added Abramovich, "He will always be welcomed with open arms at Stamford Bridge."
Until then, he won't be there on Wednesday.
Another coach will take his place on the bench of the Blues on the occasion of the reception of the Wolves (19h).
And it's other coach should be Thomas Tuchel.
Sacked on Christmas Eve by PSG, the German technician is about to sign his contract in London according to various British and German sources.
The opportunity for him to find his captain Thiago Silva, now well established in Chelsea.
The former Borussia Dortmund will therefore not start from a blank page for the new challenge that awaits him: to restore confidence to a workforce that will face Atletico Madrid in the round of the Champions League in a month.
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