Frank Lampard's Sack Watch / Sacked

[RUCK4444]

I think he's better than he's being given credit for, it depends if he is trying to build something like Ole is, changing certain areas of the club / squad for the better and planning for the future. If so then give him time, which is what I've done with Ole.

You can be sure he loves the club and wants the best for it, I would personally give him a chance to reverse the slump. If he doesn't then so be it. Many flavour of the month managers are flopping left right and centre at the minute anyway.

But that's just me, I do think there is a certain benefit of promoting from within. Roman doesn't understand the concept of building towards sustained success though, it's all short term fixes, chasing instant success, treating managers like dogs. I don't care because it's Chelsea but I couldn't get behind that as a fan.

 

[Feed Me]

That Athletic article, I guarantee they wrote 2, depending on whether he won or lost. How did it come out so quickly after the defeat?

Yeah, I was thinking the same, they were ready to publish bang on full time.

 

[Tom Cato]

Everything is about Ole isnt it?

The two managers are compared on results all the time so it seems apt, considering this is a Manchester United forum and the poster made a comparison to a manager who has been in a comparable situation.

But you're right he should have compared Lampard to Sam Allardyce of West Bromwich Albion intead.

 

[cyberman]

All part of the Abramovich plan? Lampard given the job to keep fans onside when looked like we'd struggle due to transfer ban. He over achieved to get 4th last season.

He's struggling to get the best out of the new signings, we're a worse team than last year despite the £200m spent.

If we're not making top 4 or winning the CL this year he should be sacked. Are we at that point yet?

Said before his hiring he should stay at Derby, remains to be seen how it pans out this season and if taking the Chelsea job does anything positive for his managerial career long term.

When Arsenal and Spurs had disastrous seasons, was 4th place that much of an achievement?
You basically finished above Leciester who had to collapse to get there.

 

[scorgasm]

Felt he was very honest in his post match conference and he spoke well. It could easily be seen as someone trying to justify their role though and doubt The Athletic article is based on nothing. Matt Law doesn't seem sure of Lamp's position either.

 

[Sandikan]

Honestly, if I was a Chelsea fan, I'd call this a transitional season and see how it looks in May.

That was last year wasn't it?
Do you have transitional seasons after kerplunking 200m on attacking "talents".

 

[LARulz]

That was last year wasn't it?
Do you have transitional seasons after kerplunking 200m on attacking "talents".

To a degree, yes. A lot of these players haven't played in the league and it's a lot of new talent. Last season he had a transfer bam, this year it's trying to bed in a lot of people and find a system that works with them

 

[Hugh Jass]

I just don’t get it with Lampard. I have said it from day one but i was astonished when he got the job after what I’d call an indifferent managerial start with Derby. What did Abramovich see to back up this decision ? I was surprised when Ole got our job but to be fair he was initially appointed on an interim basis plus he did have more experience than Lampard. To back up the respective appointments Ole has out manoeuvred Lampard pretty much every time they’ve crossed paths.

Attacking football i think. Under Mourinho and Conte it was more defensive.

Hard to see who they can get now if they do sack him. Maybe Tuchel.

Lampard has questioned some of the players, which is always dangerous.

 

[TheReligion]

Good post match interview tbf to him

Yeah agreed. I think he'll be pissed off with the desire behind the scenes but did the right thing publicly I thought.

 

[padr81]

I think they need to be given time to gel. They did massive surgery on the squad but a lot of the players currently don't look great. We've seen time and again players take an age to adapt to the prem. The issue for Lampard is you'd imagine missing out on the top 4 would put real pressure on him next season (if they miss out). Right now they look a fair bit off but these things can turn around quickly. 3 weeks ago Pep and Ole both needed sacking and Frank and Jose was gonna dethrone Klopp, now Joses had a mini slump, and Franks in the slump while Pep and Ole are back to being great managers again.

The only thing consistent this season is teams are inconsistent. Its hard to judge a manager on a season like this.

 

[anant]

So, is the general consensus that he should be sacked?

Obviously you and quite a few Chelsea fans want him to continue, so he would be doing something right. He hasn't lost the fan base it seems, so I'd expect him to last some more.

However, I see people comparing his situation to Ole's last year, which I find laughable. We had a proper injury crisis and if you take out one of Rashy/Martial and Pog from the side that started the season (which became the case thanks to injuries) , one would say we're the 5th/6th best squad, and that's where we were pre-Bruno. Additionally, our underlying stats were pretty good. Pre-Bruno, we were the 4th best in terms of xG and 2nd best in terms of xGA, and the results weren't holding as we were underachieving by a significant margin (xG difference - xGA difference was 10 goals). That's pretty much the only reason I've always been Ole in.

However, in case of Lampard, while your underlying stats have been impressive, you're not really over/underachieving. And if one looks at your performance it makes sense as well. The variation/consistency in performance just isn't there. You guys aren't able to defend and attack well in the same game. It seems you guys are really poor in defensive transitions and if Lampard isn't able to solve that really soon, it'd be curtains for him

 

[Sandikan]

To a degree, yes. A lot of these players haven't played in the league and it's a lot of new talent. Last season he had a transfer bam, this year it's trying to bed in a lot of people and find a system that works with them

He has been very unlucky that his 3 big attacking mids all seem fairly wet lettuce. Both in injuries and in settling in generally.

 

[Ramshock]

The two managers are compared on results all the time so it seems apt, considering this is a Manchester United forum and the poster made a comparison to a manager who has been in a comparable situation.

But you're right he should have compared Lampard to Sam Allardyce of West Bromwich Albion intead.

Yes good call as they are of the same body type.

 

[Ramshock]

In the PL. That's 5.5 seasons.

They had a lot of CL/cup runs too though, I thought it would be more.

 

[LARulz]

He has been very unlucky that his 3 big attacking mids all seem fairly wet lettuce. Both in injuries and in settling in generally.

Yeah, on paper, we would have been delighted if we had signed them. So I can't even say 'they weren't good players' or whatever. I just think they've struggled to adapt so far. No preseason, lack of rest between matches etc. probably means they haven't really settled in like most normally would (people like Bruno are more an exception)

 

[Eckers99]

That was last year wasn't it?
Do you have transitional seasons after kerplunking 200m on attacking "talents".

Of course you do. I remember Fergie spending a fortune on the likes of Ince, Webb, Wallace and Pallister, struggling to get a tune out of them for months and coming as close as he ever came to being sacked. It's not easy to integrate a lot of signings at once so yeah, I'd class this season as transitional for them.

 

[georgipep]

We should get him here if Chelsea part ways. Far better than solskjaer.

Or something

I'm using a dark mode style and was wondering if you are insane until I realized

 

[Mickeza]

I personally wouldn’t sack him as I think they’ll improve and finish 4th which considering all the new arrivals is steady progress but I seriously don’t get not starting CHO. Every time I watch Chelsea he’s their best player.

 

[Hugh Jass]

I dont think Kovacic is good enough. Not sold on Mount either but he is young.

 

[Sassy Colin]

If the board come out on Monday publicly stating their backing for him, you know he's on his last legs.

 

[acnumber9]

I personally wouldn’t sack him as I think they’ll improve and finish 4th which considering all the new arrivals is steady progress but I seriously don’t get not starting CHO. Every time I watch Chelsea he’s their best player.

Progressing from fourth to fourth?

 

[RORY65]

It will always be weird that half of the "Big 6" clubs decided to appoint managers without anything like the experience or CVs you would expect managers at those clubs to have before being appointed. Once those clubs made those decisions surely they accepted that even in a best case scenario it was going to take time and those managers were going to make mistakes on the job from which they would need to learn.

Although I don't like Lampard as a man and there's no evidence that he's going to be the man to get it right (again why it was weird that he got the job in the first place), it would be strange not to give him a bit of time to try and resolve the issues they have there given they made the commitment to him to begin with and given that he did a decent job last season and they're not too far off being in the hunt even now.

 

[Ludens the Red]

What's with the lack of ambition and tactics today?

I like to wind you lot up but this must be infuriating. I just see nothing from Frank to try and get back in this. I also have no idea what you were set up to do in the first place.

@duffer

 

[Mickeza]

Progressing from fourth to fourth?

Yes. Like if we finish 3rd we’ve still progressed as we’re a much stronger squad then last year.

 

[Matriac]

They had a lot of CL/cup runs too though, I thought it would be more.

Yeah, but it says on top of that image that the stat is only counting PL games. Conte was there for a season, he has 38 games.

 

[Sandikan]

We should get him here if Chelsea part ways. Far better than solskjaer.

Or something

Didn't someone suggest Arteta as assistant manager here. Surprised someone hasn't genuinely suggested the same with Lampard.
Maybe coaching the midfielders on how to deflect in shots.

 

[royboy16]

I think he lost the players confidence. Don’t see no future for him. Anyway for me Gerrard job at Rangers has been far more impressive to me.

Premier league is a much tougher league than the SPL.

 

[Mb194dc]

When Arsenal and Spurs had disastrous seasons, was 4th place that much of an achievement?
You basically finished above Leciester who had to collapse to get there.

I predicted 5th last season. Almost everyone expected us to also have a disastrous season without Hazard and to struggle in attack.

It was an achievement and we got to the cup final.

Chelsea managers don't get transitional seasons, especially not when Mr A has shelled out £200m. Chelsea have to make top 4 this year or no chance Lampard keeps job.

 

[Berbaclass]

Who would replace him? Surely between Allegri or Tuchel?

 

[UNITED ACADEMY]

Give him time. A real test for manager is when you can turn things around.

 

[acnumber9]

Yes. Like if we finish 3rd we’ve still progressed as we’re a much stronger squad then last year.

I’m not sure they spent £200m plus to have less points than they had this time last year. Or to finish fourth again.

 

[Mickeza]

I’m not sure they spent £200m plus to have less points than they had this time last year. Or to finish fourth again.

They weren’t expecting a title race either. They’re building a team ready to takeover when city/Liverpool start to decline. If they finish top 4 then there’s absolutely no issue.

 

[sport2793]

I don't think Lampard should get sacked yet, it really is a challenge to bring so many players in one window and integrate them seamlessly. I think the biggest frustration for me is how much slack he gets in the media relative to Ole. While this has been the case for the last season and a half, it's really become noticeable over the last couple of weeks. If Ole was in Lampard's seat everyone and I mean everyone in the media would be calling for him to be sacked. It's as if the pundits are "racist" towards Ole, if that even makes any sense.

And I still don't get the whole "overachievement" thing for finishing 4th. Everyone was saying the squad was underwhelming but last time I checked they didn't have to rely on the likes of Lingard and Pereira like we had to prior to the restart.

As I supported Ole, I think Frank should get some time to turn things around. I just wish that Lampard was treated more critically (or Ole more favorably) as the media narrative unfortunately matters.

 

[UNITED ACADEMY]

Who would replace him? Surely between Allegri or Tuchel?

Tuchel, if they are going to replace him. Germany & bundesliga connection means he might understand to get the best out of Werner and Havertz. And also connection with Thiago Silva. Can’t think anymore suitable man given players they have.

 

[city-puma]

It will be truly crazy to sack him due to this game.
he100% has his own to blame for the game plan. It is like he had not emphasized to the team the need to keep a compact shape against man city consisting of almost all midfielders above the defenders who are superb to exploit and space between the lines with plenty of quick interchange and movements. Instead, the front, midfield, and defense lines of Chelsea were stretched so much and leave the space unforgivably huge for man city players to move in quickly.
But then, people will wonder what the players on the pitch were doing. They seem not having the game intelligent to sense the dangerous and collectively to sit back a little or raise their defense line higher. Even after conceding the first goal, they still did not do that. Instead, they entered a kind of panic mode without a strategy as a whole unit.
I think Lampard was naive not to put in more details in his game plan and this Chelsea team does not have a leader in pitch to guide the team mates to react as a unit when the tide suddenly changed in the game. I don’t know why Silver not takes that role.

 

[Hugh Jass]

Who would replace him? Surely between Allegri or Tuchel?

Forgot about Allegri.

 

[Maluco]

They would be 6 points off top four going into approaching the halfway point if Spurs win their game in hand. With City still ahead of them too.

Fulham away is a tough game and then they are going to Leicester, which could put them 9 points off the pace for top 4 at the half way point. They looked awful today and have 4 points from the last 6 games.

Frank is a goner I’m afraid...

 

[sport2793]

I dont think Kovacic is good enough. Not sold on Mount either but he is young.

Kovacic is better in possession for me than Fred but we play Fred in a way that gets more out of his talents, which is why he impacts the game more.

 

[mu4c_20le]

Chelsea managers don't get transitional seasons, especially not when Mr A has shelled out £200m. Chelsea have to make top 4 this year or no chance Lampard keeps job.

He needs to do it in style as well, not just squeak in there with 1-0s and late Giroud winners. He blew the entire budget on attackers, and today was supposed to be the dream lineup, other than Havertz for Mount.

 

[phenry]

The Athletic have clearly been tipped off and had an article prepared and ready to go. Had a “Lampard Out” story out before the players had left the pitch

I'd say its less of a tip than an educated guess