Where did it go wrong in Frank Lampard’s first stint as Chelsea manager?

Frank Lampard has secured a sensational return to Chelsea on an interim basis, it was confirmed on Thursday.

The 44-year-old will take on a managerial role with the Blues for the second time in his career, following the departure of Graham Potter last weekend.

His return to west London has been met with mixed emotions, as fans recall the issues suffered throughout his previous 18-month stint in charge of the Blues.

However, some supporters have raised points about the good things that Lampard did during his time and offered optimism over his temporary appointment.

And so, here, Sportsmail takes a look at all the things Lampard got right and wrong from his first stint… and what he can do to save Chelsea’s season.

Club legend Frank Lampard has been confirmed as the new Chelsea caretaker manager 

WHAT WENT WRONG

There’ll be no hiding from the fact that Lampard’s stint as permanent Chelsea boss just did not work out.

There had been high expectations for the club legend, who had helped guide Derby County to the Championship Play-Off final in the season prior to joining.

However, the move from Pride Park to Stamford Bridge was always going to be a challenge for the ex-England star, who spent just 18-months in charge of Chelsea.

When Lampard arrived at the club, in July 2019, they were still serving a two-year transfer ban for breaching FIFA rules regarding their academy players. 

That ban came to an end in February 2020 and, in the summer window that followed, Lampard oversaw a huge personnel overhaul at the club. 

Roman Abramovich’s side spent over £215million [€247million] that month, as they brought in the likes of Kai Havertz, Timo Werner, Ben Chilwell and Hakim Ziyech for lucrative fees.

Lampard struggled to get the best out of lucrative signings Timo Werner (L) and Kai Havertz (R)

Former Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich went all guns blazing doing the summer transfer window in 2020, as the Blues were coming off a two-year transfer ban

It was hardly the route that Lampard had been going down, given his preference to use homegrown players in his Chelsea side.

However, with prices lowered off the back of the pandemic, Abramovich took the opportunity to sign some of Europe’s hottest young talents. 

It ended up backfiring on the Blues, as they struggled to get the best out of a number of those players – with Werner eventually leaving two years later.

However, it’d be unfair to pin all of that blame on ex-owner Abramovich, as Lampard did mismanage a number of those players.

Werner, for example, had been prolific in-front of goal for German side RB Leipzig prior to joining the Blues for a £47.5 million fee. 

He’d made a name for himself as one of the best striker’s in Europe, however, would quickly find that his opportunities in the central role would be sparse at Chelsea.

Instead, Lampard opted to play Werner on the wing in a lot his matches – preferring Tammy Abraham as the lone striker – where he struggled to have any impact.

Werner was shipped back to Germany just two years after completing a move to west London

Lampard proved to struggle with his tactics during his first stint as Chelsea boss

The German would go on to record just six Premier League goals from his debut campaign in the English top-flight, as Lampard failed to get the best out of him.

Tactically, Lampard proved to be somewhat out of his depth at Chelsea and his persistence with a back-four looked foolish once Thomas Tuchel arrived.

The German employed a five-at-the-back formation immediately and it resulted in just one loss from his opening 15 matches. Lampard, on the other hand, had lost three of his final seven games in charge. 

Another aspect of Lampard’s tenure that led to his eventual departure was his underwhelming performances in finals for the Blues.

Chelsea, who are used to success in their club history, made it to two separate finals under Lampard – and they lost both.

The first was the UEFA Super Cup final in August 2019, where they lost on penalties to the previous Champions League winners, Liverpool. 

One year later, Lampard found himself in the dugout at Wembley as Chelsea took on Arsenal in the FA Cup final.

He was bested by the Gunners’ current boss Mikel Arteta, who claimed the first trophy of his managerial career with a 2-1 win over the Blues.   

Thomas Tuchel won the Champions League with Chelsea four months after Lampard’s sacking

WHAT WENT RIGHT  

Despite all that went wrong for Lampard as Chelsea manager, there were also a fair amount of decisions that he seemed to get right. 

One aspect that Lampard drew particularly praise for, was the faith that he placed in some of Chelsea’s younger stars.

The Englishman would regularly pick some of their Cobham graduates – like Mason Mount, Tammy Abraham, Reece James and Billy Gilmour – in his starting line-ups.

In-fact, Lampard gave three out of those four names [Abraham excluded] their Premier League debut, during his time at the club. 

The youngsters had differing results within the Chelsea team, with England midfielder Mount having the most success for Lampard.

The 24-year-old, who had been coached by Lampard at Derby the season before, recorded a seven goals and five assists in his debut campaign for the Blues. 

Lampard developed a close relationship with Chelsea and England star Mason Mount (L)

Despite proving to be a useful player for the Blues in recent years, Mount’s future now remains up in the air after struggling to find his from during this campaign. 

So, perhaps it could be said that Lampard held the key to unlocking Mount’s true potential, having got the best out of him at both Derby and Chelsea.

And, he’s not the only one who thrived under Lampard’s leadership, with players like Abraham and Fikayo Tomori also doing well before getting sold to Italy. 

Abraham had proved to be a useful player throughout Lampard’s first season back at Stamford Bridge and managed to score 15 goals in the Premier League.

The next year, he became the first Chelsea youth team product to score 10 or more goals in back-to-back seasons but this wasn’t enough to ensure his future at the club.

Newly appointed boss Thomas Tuchel, who came in just three days after Lampard had been sacked, was not a fan of Abraham and swiftly sold him to Roma.

Fikayo Tomori (L) and Tammy Abraham (R) regularly featured for Lampard’s Chelsea before both players were later sold to Italian clubs

WHAT MUST HE DO NOW?

It’s fair to say that Chelsea are enduring a crisis period at the club. The departure of Graham Potter has left their star-studded squad in disarray for the remainder of the campaign.

With a Champions League quarter-final clash with Real Madrid awaiting next week, and the Blues sitting 11th in the table, Lampard must now try and steady the ship. 

Chelsea are without a win in their last three matches – two draws and a loss – and a victory in their trip to Wolves on Saturday would certainly be a good start for him.

However, success in the Champions League would be the greatest achievement for Lampard, who was sacked just four months before the Blues won it in 2020-21. 

The Blues need to steady their ship ahead of their crucial end to the 2020-21 campaign

Another task, that will be crucial to finding success at Chelsea, will be for Lampard to whittle down some of the squad and identify those who he can trust.

Consistency has been the main issue for Chelsea, with a range of first-team players suffering injuries throughout the season, as well as a host of new faces being signed in the transfer windows. 

There are 31 first-team players listed on the club’s official website and yet Lampard will only be allowed to have 18 at his disposal for Premier League matches. 

A number of players have already been linked with a potential move away from west London in summer and Lampard could well begin that process immediately.