The manager of Chelsea football club Frank Lampard has said categorically that he didn’t take up the coaching job at the club in order to bring in academy players. He stressed that he came to the club to win titles which he is set to do with more established players.
Frank Lampard joined the North London club prior to the 2019-2020 season as the club’s coach. Unlike other clubs, he did not have the opportunity to sign players before the commencement of the just-concluded season because the club was serving a UEFA transfer ban.
The former Chelsea midfielder who went on to play for Manchester City and then joined New York City in Major League Soccer before he retired from playing football, performed what many defined as a miracle as he narrowly survived in the top four of the Premier League by using mostly academy players.
However, he has said during a press conference held today that finishing in the top four and qualifying for the UEFA Champions League was not the reason that made him sign up for the coaching job of his former club.
The 42-year-old English tactician who stated this while trying to justify the fact that he has spent about £200 million so far in the transfer market, said the players the club has brought into the club has changed the “landscape”.
“I didn’t come into the job to fight for fourth place or bring academy players in; I came here to win”, Frank Lampard said. “Last year we couldn’t recruit and this year the club has made the decision to bring in players. It changes the landscape and we’re ready to work.
“The pressure on me to do better should be standard. I don’t want to talk about statements.
“Last year, we were very happy for Champions League places. We were very joined up in the business we wanted to do.
“I am surprised if you didn’t think I wasn’t under pressure last season. I thrive off the pressures. It’s what I love doing.”
🗣”I’m surprised if you feel I was under no pressure last year, if you follow us as close as you do and the Chelsea job, you can never go though a season of no pressure!”
— Football Daily (@footballdaily) September 10, 2020
Frank Lampard on the pressure as Chelsea manager pic.twitter.com/nV0UL8iAio
Can Frank Lampard survive 2020-2021 Pressure?
Though Frank Lampard has admitted that he thrived off the pressure he went through in the 2019-2020 season despite using mostly academy players, the forthcoming 2020-2021 season which will commence on September 12, will bring another level of pressure on the English tactician.
As stated earlier, he has already spent close to £200 million in the transfer market and he has successfully brought in some of the finest youngsters across Europe, the owner of the club, Roman Abramovich, might give Lampard little or no breathing space if he fails to perform in the forthcoming season.
Recall that he has made 6 world-class signings already in this summer transfer window which makes him the most active manager in the transfer market and made Chelsea the biggest spender in the market.
Lampard bought Germany international Kai Havertz for £72m, Germany’s Timo Werner for £48m, England international Ben Chilwell for £45m, and Moroccan Hakim Ziyech for £36m. Besides these players, defender Thiago Silva and Malang Sarr have joined the club on free transfers. These players can hold their own against any club in the world and Frank Lampard will have no excuse if he fails with them.
