Club legend Frank Lampard is out of Chelsea.
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Roman Abramovich and the Chelsea board made the relentless decision to fire Lampard, 42, after 18 months in office at Stamford Bridge, after a five-game losing streak in his last eight Premier League games that left them five points out of the top four .
On December 5, Chelsea were at the top of the Premier League table, but Lampard’s young team fell into the league with poor performances, equaling their losses. It is believed that the board was concerned about the lack of progress of the cast and that the young people lacked confidence.
Add to that more than $ 300 million spent on new players this summer, and Lampard was under pressure only in his second season at the helm of the club where he is the greatest scorer of all time.
Via Opta, here are some important statistics about Lampard’s time in charge of Chelsea:
- Frank Lampard’s average points per game of 1.67 is the 4th lowest of any permanent Chelsea coach in the Premier League.
- In the Roman Abramovich era, only Andre Villas-Boas (47.5%) has a worse winning rate in all competitions among Chelsea’s permanent managers than Frank Lampard (52.4%).
- Since the start of last season, only Newcastle (54) have conceded more away goals in the Premier League than Frank Lampard’s Chelsea (50).
- Chelsea have not conceded goals in just 17% of Premier League away games under Frank Lampard (05/29); among those who led more than 10 away games in the competition, this is the lowest percentage of any Chelsea coach.
- Since August 2019, Chelsea have won just 15 points against other “big six” teams, a low score alongside Arsenal. The blues scored 17 goals and suffered 28 times in 15 matches.
- Chelsea have kept 13 clean sheets in 29 games in all competitions this season, the same number they kept in 55 games over 2019-20.
Here’s what Chelsea’s statement said after they fired Lampard.
“Chelsea Football Club said goodbye to head coach Frank Lampard today. This was a very difficult decision, and not taken lightly by the owner and the board. We are grateful to Frank for what he achieved in his time as the Club’s Head Coach. However, recent results and performances did not correspond to the Club’s expectations, leaving the Club in the middle of the table without any clear path for sustained improvement.
“There can never be a good time to part with a club legend like Frank, but after long deliberation and consideration, it was decided that a change is needed now to give the club time to improve its performance and results this season.
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 greatest respect for him. He is a man of great integrity and has the highest work ethic. However, in the current circumstances, we believe that it is better to change managers. ‘
‘On behalf of everyone at the Club, the Council and personally, I would like to thank Frank for his work as a head coach and wish him much success in the future. He is an important icon of this great club and his status here remains unchanged. He will always be welcome back to Stamford Bridge.
Thomas Tuchel will be next for Chelsea
Chelsea said it “will not make further comments until a new coach is appointed”, but our partners at Sky Germany believe that Thomas Tuchel will be in charge in a few days. Maybe even for the game against Wolves on Wednesday.
Tuchel was fired by Paris Saint-Germain in December, but his quality as a coach is indisputable and he has improved young players at Borussia Dortmund and PSG and that will be his main task here. He will also be tasked with improving Chelsea defensively and making it better tactically.
New hires and fellow Germans Kai Havertz and Timo Werner will be his main projects to work on, while Tuchel also trained Christian Pulisic in Dortmund, so this could work well for the USMNT star, as Tuchel really kicked off his Bundesliga career. .
Tuchel had long wanted to reach the Premier League, and after taking PSG to the UEFA Champions League final last season, it seemed like the next natural step.
However, this resignation seems tough for Lampard, especially after the transfer ban last season, when he took Chelsea to the top four and the FA Cup final in very difficult circumstances. But Chelsea is a relentless club and Tuchel is one of the best coaches in Europe and is available now.
The fact that Abramovich made a public statement shows how much he respects Lampard, as the Chelsea owner rarely talks about the club and the decisions made.
Lampard’s fate has been sealed, perhaps for a while, but he will probably get another job in the Premier League after showing glimpses of what he can achieve in difficult circumstances.