Chelsea news: Former Blues midfielder calls Frank Lampard's reported managerial appointment 'nonsense'

What's the story?

Former Chelsea midfielder Craig Burley has slammed his former club's decision to replace Maurizio Sarri with Frank Lampard, comparing the situation to that of Manchester United and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

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With Juventus reportedly set to announce Sarri as their replacement for Massimiliano Allegri, Blues hero Lampard has emerged as a favorite to land the managerial job at Stamford Bridge.

The 40-year-old has been heavily linked with a return to West London after having impressed during his managerial debut with Championship side Derby County. The Rams went head-to-head with Aston Villa in the Championship play-off final in May but missed out on the chance to play Premier League football after a 2-1 defeat at Wembley.

The Blues are said to be keen on a manager who is loved and respected at the club in contrast to Sarri, who struggled to bond with the club faithful, despite guiding the side to the Europa League title and a third-place finish.

The heart of the matter

Despite Lampard's reputation at Chelsea, Burley believes that the decision to hire him would be a mistake on the club's part.

He said, "The one thing I’ve heard is that this unites the fans, what a load of nonsense. It’s the same thing as at United - ‘well this gets the fans on our side’, what the hell does that matter?"

"Right, because fans get on the side of a team when they perform on the field. When a team doesn’t perform on the field, the fans aren’t on that side."

"It matters not a jot who they appoint, fans will only be on your side because they think ‘oh, well Frank’s been at Chelsea for years, this is a great appointment, we’re all happy'".

"Guess what, when results start going a little bit awry like they did at United, things will change. If Frank comes in he’ll probably bring in Jody Morris, who was his assistant at Derby, another ex-Chelsea player. Good coach, good guy, both good guys no problem there. It’s just experience."

The former midfielder added that mere fan appeasement will not work at the Bridge and cited Manchester United and their brief winning streak with Solskjaer as an example.

"A big turnaround is needed at Chelsea, a big turnaround, and I go back to it, it’s short-term. I go back to United, Ed Woodward was so soft in trying to appease the fans that he rushed out and gave Ole Gunnar Solskjaer the contract. Then results started going downhill."

"It’s a big call all around if that’s the case. If it is, it’s clearly Chelsea saying ‘we want someone we can control, and we probably aren’t going to spend money on players'".

What's next?

Derby are reported to be demanding £4 million in compensation for the loss of Lampard, who still has two good years remaining on his contract.

With Ajax's Erik ten Hag and Allegri out of the picture owing to the Blues' transfer ban, fans are expecting an announcement for Lampard sooner than later.