Chelsea have confirmed the sacking of Frank Lampard and former Paris Saint-Germain boss Thomas Tuchel is set to replace him.
It comes less than 24 hours after the Blues defeated Championship side Luton Town 3-1 in the FA Cup.
However, with the side currently sat ninth in the Premier League, the club hierarchy have decided to make the change.
Frank Lampard Set to Be Sacked By Chelsea
Chelsea Football Club has today parted company with Head Coach Frank Lampard.
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) January 25, 2021
Disappointing Season
Though it is never really a marker of how well a season will go, Chelsea were rightfully dubbed the ‘winners’ of the summer transfer window in 2020 after they signed both Timo Werner and Kai Havertz from the Bundesliga.
The sheer amount of money spent on two of football’s biggest young stars was supposed to bring Chelsea success – or at least to the very brink of it. However, Werner has failed to settle so far while Havertz has struggled with injury setbacks and Covid-19, while the rest of the team has generally underperformed too.
The Blues are currently ninth in the table following a 2-0 defeat to Leicester City last week, which proved to be the final nail in the coffin for Lampard after weeks of speculation surrounding his job.
A 3-1 success over Luton in the FA Cup on Sunday was not enough to save him, particularly given the laboured fashion in which Chelsea went on to win the game.
On Lampard’s departure, club owner Roman Abramovich said: “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’.
“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.”
Off the Pitch Tension?
Aside from the struggles on the pitch, The Athletic also report that there has been growing tension between Lampard and several individuals in the squad, particularly those on the periphery.
With so many new faces to fit into the squad (aside from Havertz and Werner, Ben Chilwell, Hakim Ziyech, Edouard Mendy and Thiago Silva all arrived for this season), it’s been a difficult balancing act for Lampard to give players the game time they feel they deserve.
Reportedly, some of those who were outside the regular group of starters had grown too unhappy for the board’s liking.
Who Could Replace Him?
There have been reports for weeks now about who could replace Lampard.
Former Tottenham Hotspur boss Mauricio Pochettino was among them, but he has since taken the vacant spot at Paris Saint-Germain instead, while Ralf Rangnick was also a short-term option according to The Athletic.
However, it has now emerged that Tuchel, who was the leading candidate all along, is going to take over, according to Fabrizio Romano.
The former Borussia Dortmund boss has reportedly accepted the job and is seen as the ideal manager to get the best out of both Werner had Havertz.
Romano adds that Chelsea also considered Julian Naglesmann but RB Leipzig would not allow him to leave mid-season, and Max Allegri is also considering different clubs.
Main Photo
