Frank Lampard’s return to Chelsea as manager seems only a matter of time now after developments today.
As you can see from the tweet below, Lampard’s current club Derby County have confirmed they’ve allowed the former Blues midfielder to discuss taking the job at Stamford Bridge.
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This will no doubt have loads of Chelsea fans very excited indeed, with former boss Maurizio Sarri never really winning over the supporters in his single season in west London.
With the Italian tactician now having returned to Serie A to take over at Juventus, there is a vacancy and it’s long looked like Lampard would be the man to fill it.
So, if the former England international is the new man in the CFC dugout, what will his first game in charge be and when will it come?
Chelsea’s pre-season fixtures so far are up on the club’s official site, though it’s not uncommon for new games to be added to the schedule at short notice during pre-season.
As it stands, Lampard’s first Chelsea game would be Kawasaki Frontale on Friday 19th July at 7pm in Yokohama, Japan.
Just four days later, the 41-year-old would lead the club against a big-name opponent in Barcelona, also in Japan.
In terms of Lampard’s first competitive Chelsea game, he faces a very tricky start indeed in the Premier League with a trip to Manchester United on 11 August.
Three days later, he’ll have the chance to win his first trophy with the club as they take on Champions League winners Liverpool in the European Super Cup, having won the Europa League final against Arsenal back in May.