Derby grants release: Lampard before returning to Chelsea

The return of Frank Lampard to FC Chelsea is apparently possible. Derby County has given his team manager permission to negotiate with the Blues about the head coach’s vacant job. That’s what the second league team said.

Chelsea are looking for a new coach following Maurizio Sarri’s move to Italian record holders Juventus Turin. With the release for Lampard (41), the manhunt should “quickly” come to an end, Derby writes in his opinion.

Lampard spent 13 years working for Chelsea as a professional, winning three championships and four FA Cup titles with the club alongside the Champions League (2012) and Europa League (2013). He first served as team manager in Derby last summer and missed out on a Premier League promotion in the play-off finals against Aston Villa with co-coach John Terry, his long-time Blues side.

Michael Ballack (42) is under discussion as a possible Lampard assistant at Chelsea. The former DFB captain played alongside Lampard for the Londoners for four years. He currently holds the UEFA-B licence in Wales. On Lampard’s birthday a few days ago, Ballack congratulated via Social Media with the sentence: “See you soon!