Frank Lampard’s Chelsea Transfer Decision Nears as Club Awaits Outcome of Two Key Games

April 10, 2023Last Updated: April 10, 2023

0 4 minutes read

The most pressing question surrounding Frank Lampard at Chelsea is how his short-term, potentially 11-game second spell in charge will affect the club’s future. What can Chelsea actually do with this thing? It’s a big question.

Fans will be relieved to hear his name again and to have something resembling an identity, but once the club’s all-time leading scorer departs – as he almost certainly will and should – at the end of the season, that will change once more. Who is to say that [insert new manager’s name here] will be adored?

This is possibly another reason why Lampard is so important for Chelsea here. His appointment alone provides something desperately needed. Time. The club is adamant that the next announcement will not be rushed. Within 48 hours, Graham Potter went from Brighton prospect to underwhelming new boss at SW6.

Mauricio Pochettino was the only other man interviewed, and reports indicate that he was already aware of Chelsea’s affection for Potter. That could come back to haunt the club if they go back to the Argentine now.

The most important thing at stake is ensuring that these relationships are in place and that the fit is right for the next man in the hot seat. Lampard’s performance as a placeholder is critical to this step. The new owners are learning on the job, gradually establishing a hierarchy to make informed decisions for them, but this is, albeit an embarrassing stage to reach, a wise decision.

But, in terms of Lampard’s long-term impact, can he truly assist Mason Mount in turning his long-term future around? Is it important for him to play Hakim Ziyech or Christian Pulisic, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang or Cesar Azpilicueta? All of these players do not appear to have a future in west London beyond this season.

Is it suddenly acceptable if Lampard believes they are the best way to achieve results? Potter would not be able to get away with it. But this is Lampard, and the situation is unknown. Will they really care what Lampard has to say about the players when it comes to appointing the next person tasked with overseeing this disorganized conglomeration of pieces?

If there is no overlap of coaches and Chelsea is in limbo without a head coach, who makes the player decisions? Finally, what does Chelsea intend to do with Joao Felix?

This Portuguese wonderkid, the Zac Efron of footballing quality, is all about style over substance, but he has a lot of promise. What comes next for him? While he is often brilliant on the ball, his performances have only resulted in two goals, both in draws, and no assists. He doesn’t do much for someone who has been a fulcrum of the team, given a free role, no pressing or defensive responsibilities, and a lot of the ball.

His turns and flicks are excellent. It’s impossible to predict what will happen next when he gains possession, which is frequently funneled through him anyway. However, Chelsea appear to have already sent out a galaxy-wide scouting mission to find players of his caliber. Technical demons and aesthetic machines. Being a creative number ten who also plays as a striker is trendy. He’s a 9.5, but does this team really want that?

And even if it did, which it almost certainly does not, who decides? Is Lampard good enough after 11 games? Is it the Mentat figures crunching the numbers? Has anyone finished Moneyball yet? Felix is the type of player for whom the system must be broken. He is that good, and he has the potential to be even better.

Watch him play, glide with the ball, move his feet at breakneck speed, and emerge with it glued to his boots. The final pass was less than spectacular. Hone that, and you’ll have a player to admire in modern football. Can another risk of this magnitude be taken given the club’s financial uncertainty?

And, in the end, is Lampard the man to make the call? Felix was transferred to the European nights. He wasn’t paid on a six-month loan to move Chelsea from ninth to eleventh place. You don’t sign Portugal’s golden boy just to compete for a spot in the top four. On Champions League nights, he is the man, the kid, who can break down the opposing defense. To slip as an invisible cog through Antonio Rudiger’s robot gaze before it’s too late.

If Chelsea can get past Real Madrid, and despite everything telling you that they shouldn’t, can’t, and won’t, it’s difficult not to see the club’s pure beauty and sheer arrogance in continuing to defy, prodding the European Gods to let them do it again, Felix will be a key part of it. He’s the type of player Lampard has never had.

Sure, Kai Havertz has been tried and tested by him, but no one has seen his best yet. Thiago Silva is fantastic, and N’Golo Kante is one-of-a-kind. Felix is on a whole other level of wonderful, gracious joy. Lampard has no choice but to play him just so he can stand on the sidelines and watch him run between the legs of four opposing players at the same time.

Chelsea has nine league games to play background music for their true, true goal this season. Felix has two games to prove he’s the silky messiah Chelsea requires, not just wants. Impressing Lampard will go a long way toward winning over the rest of the fans, but the person who gets to decide Felix’s future is unlikely to be at the club yet, which is difficult to work around.