Lampard opens up on Chelsea departure.
Frank Lampard has opened up on his Chelsea departure and says only winning back-to-back titles would have prevented him from being sacked.
Chelsea parted ways with club legend Lampard in January, 18 months into his second managerial job, and went on to win the Champions League under successor Thomas Tuchel.
Lampard finished fourth in the Premier League and reached the FA Cup final in his only full campaign at Stamford Bridge, despite having to operate under a transfer ban that saw him promote a number of youngsters to the first team.
But the 43-year-old was made to pay for a poor run of form in the middle of last season and was sacked with the club ninth after 19 games.
Discussing the circumstances surrounding his exit on Gary Neville’s The Overlap YouTube channel, Lampard said: “When I met Bruce [Buck] and Marina [Granovskaia] it was very cordial. I knew what was coming.
“It is what it is. They are going to move on and there’s nothing you can do there. I’ve never been in that position before so it was a bit surreal at the time but when you take the job you understand that that call could come.
“At Chelsea it probably will come unless you go and win back-to-back titles and that was never going to happen.”
Lampard was linked with the vacancies at Newcastle, Norwich and Aston Villa in recent weeks but remains out of work approaching the one-year anniversary of his Chelsea exit.
The Englishman, who previously managed Derby for a season in 2018-19, is ready to return to the dugout but is waiting for the right offer to come up.
He added: “I want to work. I’ve enjoyed being out of the game with it giving me different perspectives but I’m excited and ready to work.
“You miss it and I’m waiting for the call. It makes me sound desperate but there has been a few I had after leaving Chelsea and then in the summer, but it just needs to be right.
“I’m probably in a nice place where I don’t need to get back to work too soon.”
