LAMPARD FACING CHOP AT CHELSEA
Champions League football the minimum requirement for Roman
FRANK LAMPARD is facing the sack if he cannot revive Chelsea’s top-four aspirations, with the club’s hierarchy losing patience. As Sportsmail revealed two weeks ago, the Blues do not want to make a snap decision on the future of a club legend. But a run of five defeats in eight games — the latest a 2-0 loss at Leicester on Tuesday — has left them eighth in the Premier League table.
There remains a will to give 42-yearold Lampard the chance to turn it around. He is still viewed as a promising young manager who worked wonders last season to get Chelsea into the Champions League.
But there are doubts over his suitability, particularly because of his lack of experience, and Lampard is facing an uphill battle to convince his bosses, including owner Roman Abramovich, that he is the man to lead Chelsea in the long term.
Lampard is under no illusion about the fate awaiting him if he cannot transform the team’s season. Chelsea face Luton in the fourth round of the FA Cup on Sunday before Premier League matches against Wolves, Burnley and Tottenham. That sequence of games is likely to prove crucial in deciding Lampard’s future.
Qualifying for next season’s Champions League is viewed as a minimum requirement by owner Abramovich, who will make the final call on Lampard’s future.
Sources claim the club would prefer to decide at the end of the season, but if Chelsea’s form does not improve there are indications Lampard would lose his job before then.
The Blues are currently five points adrift of a top-four place, but that will extend to eight if Liverpool beat Burnley tonight. If the gap continues to widen, then Abramovich could be forced to bring forward a decision.
The club have started identifying potential successors to Lampard. Thomas Tuchel and Max Allegri would be among those considered because the pair are out of work. Southampton boss Ralph Hasenhuttl and Red Bull Leipzig’s Julian Nagelsmann also have admirers at Chelsea.