Ole Gunnar Solskjaer vs. Frank Lampard: Who is the better manager? | Premier League 2020-21

#5 Signings Made

Solskjaer spent a massive £80m on Harry Maguire in the summer of 2019.

While they often don’t hold as much sway as they once did, managers like Solskjaer and Lampard can still be judged by their work in the transfer market. Sure, most clubs have see a Director of Football or some committee overseeing their business. But clearly, the manager of a club is the man who needs to use any players that might be purchased.

So how do Lampard and Solskjaer stack up when it comes to the players they’ve signed and the money they’ve spent? Interestingly, like with their results, their transfer business has been quite similar.

Since taking over at United, Solskjaer has spent approximately £240m on six senior players, and has also brought in a high-profile free agent in the form of Edinson Cavani. Lampard, meanwhile, has spent approximately £221m on five senior players, and like Solskjaer, has also signed a high-profile free agent – in this instance, Thiago Silva.

Solskjaer’s most expensive signing was defender Harry Maguire. Signed from Leicester City for £80m – a world-record fee for a defender – the England international did help to shore up United’s defence. But his form began to dip towards the end of 2019-20, and he’s struggled greatly in the early part of the current campaign.

The same could be said for Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Daniel James, and Bruno Fernandes, too – all of whom begun their United careers on fire before tailing off somewhat. But that may bring Solskjaer’s coaching ability into question more than anything else. And only time will tell whether Donny van de Beek and Alex Telles will follow the same pattern.

Overall though, Solskjaer has made some smart signings since taking over at United, and for the most part, he’s filled holes that needed to be filled – albeit very expensively at times.

Lampard’s transfer business is more interesting. Chelsea were banned from signing any players during his first season in charge, and so all of his purchases have come in the most recent transfer window.

Chelsea were clearly in need of a new goalkeeper to replace Kepa Arrizabalaga and a new left-back to replace Marcos Alonso. And so the signings of Edouard Mendy and Ben Chilwell clearly make sense.

However, elsewhere it appears that Lampard has overloaded his squad with attacking signings – Timo Werner, Kai Havertz, and Hakim Ziyech – for a great deal of money. But when you consider Chelsea have lost Pedro and Willian – and also sent out Ross Barkley and Michy Batshuayi on loan deals – then things don’t look overly silly.

More to the point, the two free-agent signings are worlds apart. Chelsea required an experienced centre-back to help the development of Zouma and Tomori, and so bringing in Silva – although he’s slightly past his prime – makes a lot of sense.

United’s signing of Cavani, on the other hand, is a confusing one. The Uruguayan has struggled for injuries in recent years, and the Red Devils already have a formidable front-line. How much we can blame Solskjaer for this is impossible to say, but his side surely needed strengthening elsewhere more as a priority.

Overall it’s tricky to compare in this category as the jury is still out on Lampard’s signings. However, given Solskjaer’s have largely tailed off in terms of form, I’m leaning towards giving the nod to the Chelsea boss.

Advantage: Lampard

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In Conclusion...

This comparison is a fascinating one to make as both Lampard and Solskjaer have so many similarities even though the United boss appears to be under far more pressure right now than his Chelsea counterpart.

That is, of course, because not only have United made a bad start to the current season, but also because Solskjaer has been in charge at Old Trafford for longer than Lampard has been at Stamford Bridge. And so should Chelsea take a slide in form, the same pressure would probably be on the former England man.

However, based on the limited evidence we’ve got, it’s probably fair to say that Lampard just about edges Solskjaer out. Solskjaer’s results might be slightly superior, but Lampard was managing a young and inexperienced team during 2019-20. The Norwegian, on the other hand, had a team full of proven, international-level talent.

The fact that Solskjaer seems unable to get the best out of his side should be worrying for United fans – and should be more of a point of contention than the United board’s perceived lack of ambition in the transfer market.

Overall, it would appear that Solskjaer is slightly out of his depth in the United hot-seat, while Lampard is simply learning how to swim – with the hope being that he’ll become an excellent swimmer shortly. And so in conclusion, the advantage lies with the Chelsea boss.