The win against Manchester City, and especially the image of inferiority against a direct rival like Pep Guardiola's, make Frank Lampard's project at the helm of Chelsea falter more than ever. At Stamford Bridge, the 'blues' succumbed to one of the title contenders. Three goals in just half an hour, and only one in favor in injury time, making up an incontestable defeat, put the question in the head of his coach after a summer in which more than 250 million were spent.
“Lampard's lamp is going out, now Stamford Bridge is in darkness,” said Peter Drury during the Chelsea-Manchester City television commentary. There was no discussion about which team was dominating the game. “When Mendy arrived he demonstrated his abilities. Now he is demonstrating his” Kepacities “, he warned later.
Lampard's numbers at the helm of Chelsea are already, statistically, the worst of any manager of the Roman Abramovich era. Lampard has scored a total of 1.67 points in his 55 Premier League games (49% winnings), slightly less than Andre Villas-Boas' 1.70 points a little less than a decade ago. And a long way, of course, from Jose Mourinho's 2.19 points per game in his 212 games on the London bench (66% of wins).
Possible candidates to replace the former Stamford Bridge captain have not been slow to jump either. According to The Athletic published after the match, Chelsea is already “exploring alternative plans.” The most repeated name on the list of futuribles is that of Thomas Tuchel, recently fired from Paris Saint-Germain. The German coach likes him a lot at Stamford Bridge … and he is also seen as the necessary piece to make the millionaire signings of the summer work. For example, Timo Werner and Kai Havertz have yet to explode in the Chelsea jersey, despite its price only a few months ago.
Despite having managed 17 games without losing at the beginning of the season, the streak now is not hopeful with only one win in six games: “When we beat Leeds in December I said we were not candidates for the title and now I keep saying that it takes time. Any reconstruction hurts: it hurts behind the scenes and sometimes it hurts on the pitch, “Lampard said.