“If you’re getting rid of Mark Robins, you’ve got to bring in a name.”
Paul Merson had it spot on, speaking on Soccer Saturday earlier this month.
When Coventry City got rid of Mark Robins – one of the greatest managers in their history – not many would have predicted Frank Lampard to be next in the door at the CBS Arena.
Frankly – excuse the pun – it didn’t seem likely that Lampard would be getting another chance in this country for a while.
His managerial career started reasonably well enough at Championship level with Derby, where a team built around loanees Fikayo Tomori, Mason Mount and Harry Wilson eventually missed out on promotion in the play-off final to Aston Villa.
An impressive first season at Chelsea, where he took a young team to fourth after losing Eden Hazard and being under transfer embargo, quickly unravelled the following year.
Since then there has been a troublesome stint at Everton, and a desperate interim spell back at the Blues.
The 46-year-old has been out of management now for 18 months. Considering the plethora of opportunities elsewhere for a legend of the game, you wouldn’t have blamed him for deciding it wasn’t worth it.
Clearly, however, Lampard has other ideas. He is determined to succeed.
He joins other Golden Generationers – Michael Carrick and Wayne Rooney – in the second tier. Carrick is currently impressing with Middlesbrough, while Rooney is working hard to restore his reputation at Plymouth Argyle – following a disastrous spell at Birmingham last season.
Expectation, and scrutiny, will be high. As Merson says, the Lampard name will bring that extra attention.
He will also have to deal with replacing a man who has brought unparalleled success through unbelievably challenging times in Robins.
Robins achieved promotion and trophies. He took the club to within a penalty kick of the Premier League, and to within a whisper of an FA Cup final.
The bar, for Lampard, is set so high that Coventry may have been better off appointing Armand Duplantis.
An alternative viewpoint is it may help. There is no grey area as to what success is for Lampard. The owner, Doug King, has made it quite clear in his actions and words that it is promotion or bust.
But one thing is for sure for Lampard. Failure and that could well be it for him in the management game – at least in this country.
It is a last roll of the dice.
Smith: Lampard has to make this a success
Former Leicester and Arsenal striker Alan Smith on Sky Sports News:
“He’s had some challenges, some tough times, you could say he’s had some failures. That second spell at Chelsea, he might think: ‘why did I take that?’ I guess it’s difficult to turn down your old club.
“For managers, as well as players, so much is about joining places at the right time, being able to say yes and no. Frank is desperate to become a manager, a successful one.
“It’s a big call by Coventry, so many fans were unhappy at Mark Robins getting sacked. They will be on the fence with Lampard, they know about his past efforts at management. He really needs to get off to a good start, if he’s appointed. But I wish him well.
“You have some England greats, Wayne Rooney trying to make his mark in management after a few difficult appointments, now he’s at Plymouth. Steven Gerrard is struggling to make a mark over in Saudi Arabia, will he be able to bounce back if he leaves there?
“Lampard has to make this a success now. If he were to fail at Coventry, it might be a fair while before he gets another opportunity.”
