Frank Lampard reveals what stopped him from bringing Erling Haaland to Chelsea, calls him a ‘special’ player
Frank Lampard talked about a time when Chelsea were almost ready to bring Haaland to Stamford Bridge.
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Frank Lampard once reportedly pushed very hard to bring Haaland to Chelsea (Image Via- Google)
Frank Lampard revealed that he tried to sign Erling Haaland for Chelsea during his first spell as the manager at Stamford Bridge on Friday. The Man-City striker came up against Lampard’s team in a pre-season friendly in 2019 while he was playing for RB Salzburg in Austria. He scored 28 goals in 22 matches that season before signing for Borussia Dortmund the following summer, but Lampard said he attempted to bring him to West London instead during his 18-month spell in charge between 2019 and 2021.
Ultimately competition for the Norway international’s signature, together with the fact not everybody at Chelsea was convinced that a bid for Haaland would have been the right move, meant that Lampard was left frustrated. His 36 Premier League goals for title-chasing City this season mean he has scored as many times in the league as the entire Chelsea squad has, with the two teams meeting at the Etihad on Sunday as City looks for the victory they need to seal the title.
While talking about the matter, Frank said, “I’ve got huge respect for him as a player, he’s a player I tried to bring to Chelsea the first time I was here. I was really keen to get him here but obviously that couldn’t happen. His level at that point was very clear, we played against him in a pre-season game for Salzburg. Credit to him, I love seeing players of that level, I love seeing players of that personality and hunger to play and be the best which he’s proved himself to be... I thought he’d adapt straight away just (because of) his level.”
Lampard then concluded by saying, “The rest is just credit to himself and the team around him. I did expect that, it’s not just an easy hindsight answer, I’ve got real respect for the playerI don’t know whether he would have decided to come here anyway but I was a big fan. There are some of those that happen that people don’t know about that could have been this way, people talk a lot about mistakes and the things that could have been in football...”
Lampard has two matches left of his interim spell in charge. Manchester United at Old Trafford and Newcastle at Stamford Bridge to come after the incoming match against Man-city.
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Inter Goalkeeper Andre Onana’s agent insists his client is happy with life at Inter Milan This is despite solid interest from Chelsea’s end. The goalkeeper has starred during the club’s unlikely run to the Champions League final, keeping eight clean sheets in 12 games in Europe’s elite club competition.
Chelsea are reportedly interested in a move for the former Ajax stopper and Standard Sport understands the Blues are eager to discuss a deal with the Italian giants. Either Kepa Arrizabalaga or Edouard Mendy could be offered in part exchange. Although it remains to be seen if Inter would be interested in a swap deal or hold out for a larger transfer fee.
Incoming Blues boss Mauricio Pochettino is thought to be keen to sign a new goalkeeper and a number of options have been explored. Brentford’s David Raya, Borussia Dortmund’s Gregor Kobel and Valencia’s Giorgi Mamardashvili are among some of the other targets considered.
Speaking to TV Play in Italy, Onana’s agent Albert Botines reportedly said, “Transfer market rumors are normal at this stage, but I prefer not to talk about it because it’s very early and now the boy is focused only on the pitch. We have a five-year contract with Inter. He has another four years on his contract and now he is focused only on the Serie A final and the Champions League final. He still has a long contract, don’t worry. He’s very happy, he’s playing for the strongest team in Italy.”
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Supratim Banerjee
(312 Articles Published)