Frank Lampard has been sacked by Chelsea after spending about 18 months as the head coach of the club, leading the club to the semi-final stage of the FA Cup last season and led the club to a 4th place finish at the end of the 2019-2020 season.
When Chelsea made Lampard the club’s coach in 2019, critics of the club thought the club was attempting a new direction. The direction Chelsea have been known for was to employ establish coaches and sack them immediately they are not grinding out the results.
But when Chelsea employed Lampard who is a football legend at the club, it was assumed that the club was moving in a different direction. Since the English tactician took over the club, he has been enjoying massive support from the club’s board.
Last summer, the club’s board released over £220 million which coach Frank Lampard used to sign Kai Havertz, Timo Werner, Hakim Ziyech, Ben Chilwell, and Edouard Mendy.
He also brought in players for free from other clubs one of which was Thiago Silva from Paris Saint Germain who has been an integral part of Lampard’s squad.
Despite all the recruits, Frank Lampard was not able to do much for the club this season. He was sacked today, January 25, 2021, when Chelsea are occupying the 9th spot on the league table with 29th points in 19 games.
Four biggest mistakes of Lampard while coaching Chelsea
- Openly blaming his players
Since things started going bad for Chelsea this season, Frank Lampard is known to sometimes blame his players for losing games or when the club does not perform up to expectation. He was once quoted as saying “they let me down today”, after a bad game.
- Frank Lampard’s love for 4-3-3 formation
Critics of Frank Lampard always criticize the manager over his love for 4-3-3. In most of his games, the English tactician would stick with the formation even when it was obvious that it was not working for him.
The worse part of Lampard’s 4-3-3 formation was that the coach found it impossible to use a number 10 in most of his games, a role a player like Kai Havertz would have played effortlessly.
- Selling Tariq Lamptey to Brighton
Tariq Lamptey was supposed to be one of the wingbacks Frank Lampard should have depended on during the 2020-2021 season. But the English tactician failed to convince him to stay at the club.
Hence, the 20-year-old right-back had to join Brighton where he has become an instant success using his pace to break oppositions’ defense and support the club’s attack.
- Not able to make Chelsea a compact team after 19 Premier League games
Despite signing over six stars from top European clubs, Frank Lampard struggle to make them play as a team after 19 Premier League games. The players found it difficult to understand themselves on the pitch which often results in miss-placed passes and unconvincing attacks.
Frank Lampard remains a legend at Chelsea
Meanwhile, the owner of the club, Roman Abramovich has stressed that the sacked coach of the club, Frank Lampard remains a respected legend of the club despite being sacked as the club’s coach.
In a statement the Russian billionaire issued and published on the club’s website immediately after the sack of Lampard, Abramovich said Lampard who is the club’s all-time highest goalscorer still has his “status” at the club intact.
“This was a very difficult decision for the club, not least because I have an excellent personal relationship with Frank and I have the utmost respect for him,” the Russian billionaire’s statement on Chelsea’s official website reads.
“He is a man of great integrity and has the highest of work ethics. However, under current circumstances, we believe it is best to change managers.
“On behalf of everyone at the club, the board, and personally, I would like to thank Frank for his work as head coach and wish him every success in the future.
“He is an important icon of this great club and his status here remains undiminished. He will always be warmly welcomed back at Stamford Bridge.”
The sack of Frank Lampard is the 14th time a coach has been sacked at Chelsea since Roman Abramovich took over the ownership of the club in 2003.
Chelsea Football Club has today parted company with Head Coach Frank Lampard.
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) January 25, 2021
