Chelsea board knows Blues fans would not turn on Frank Lampard

Chelsea legend Frank Lampard is earmarked for the Chelsea job if Maurizio Sarri goes. The board knows the fans will not turn and that is an issue for them.

Things are somehow certain and uncertain about Maurizio Sarri’s future at the same time. There is a sense that he could be just as easily sacked (or poached by an Italian side) as there is he could stay on. He is the Schrodinger’s cat of managers currently.

So while it remains unclear whether or not Roma or Milan will come for Sarri or he will stay, rumors have begun to spring about Chelsea’s supposed shortlist for replacements. Regardless of the source, Frank Lampard is almost always mentioned.

Lampard is only in his first year of management and is supposedly unafraid of a potential ban. Plenty are looking at the treatment of Sarri and assuming the fans will turn on Lampard similarly. They will not, and that is why the board will be afraid to hire him.

Make no mistake, the Chelsea fans at Stamford Bridge chanting against a manager is a rare circumstance. Jose Mourinho’s name was being sung long after he left the first time and was still being sung right up to his sacking in 2015. Antonio Conte’s name was being sung all the way up to his last match as Chelsea manager as the club lifted the FA Cup.

But Sarri joins the likes of Rafa Benitez in getting blasted by the fans. Again, that is not the norm and it should not be treated as the norm. Sarri not feeling like a Chelsea manager should not be a notion transposed on to a Lampard tenure.

Furthermore, Lampard is a Chelsea legend. He is adored by the Blues as his name is still sung long after he departed. The fans would continue to support Lampard as a Chelsea manager to the end because of who he is. Lampard would get far more leeway than the critics the move want to acknowledge.

And that is why the board will look for any other option first. Part of why Benitez was despised by the Bridge was his former comments and another part was for replacing Roberto Di Matteo. Part of why Mourinho saw so much support after his second sacking was because of how the board framed it on his way out.

The board knows that Lampard is loved and would remain loved. Sacking him would cause an uproar in the Bridge. The board would take the heat and eventually, that heat will burn them.

Knowing all that, the board will try to avoid Lampard as much as possible. They will look at Nuno Espirito Santo or similar managers who could do a job, but will not be as loved if they fail to make the grade. The board will take the safe option for themselves over Lampard and the risks involved.

Of course, Lampard is still early in his career and may not be ready to take that leap anyways. But the board will not worry about that side of things. They will worry about what effects a potential sacking of Lampard would have for them. Given that fans sing for Lampard even today, they would continue to do the same if he was Chelsea manager.

The board would fear the notion and will look for alternatives if possible.