Top News

Gus Poyet believes Frank Lampard could become Chelsea manager for a third time in the future, with the Blues icon having a fantastic season at Championship promotion hopefuls Coventry City.

With seven matches left in England's second-tier, the Sky Blues are sitting pretty at the top of the table, nine points clear of second-place Middlesbrough. Lampard took over at the Coventry Building Society Arena in November 2024, with the club 17th in the Championship at the time, but since then they have gone from strength to strength.

The Chelsea legend has had two stints as manager/head coach at Stamford Bridge. His first spell was heavily impacted by a transfer ban but he still managed to lead the Blues into the top four of the Premier League table.

• What Moises Caicedo has done after Enzo Fernandez transfer bombshell speaks volumes for Chelsea
• Enzo Maresca returns to former club two months after Chelsea exit

FOLLOW OUR CHELSEA FB PAGE! Latest Blues news, analysis and much more via our dedicated Facebook page

However, he was relieved of his duties on January 25, 2021, after a run of two wins in eight league matches, eventually being replaced by Thomas Tuchel. Lampard was then invited back to Chelsea, this time with different owners, in April 2023 - with the former Blues midfielder signing a short-term contract until the end of the season.

Lampard managed just one win during his short spell, meaning he left Chelsea at the end of the season with the worst record (9%) among any Blues manager who had led three or more matches.

But after over a year out of the managerial game, Lampard returned to Coventry and is attracting plenty of praise. Not least from Poyet, who never actually played with Lampard at Chelsea - in fact, it was Lampard who took Poyet's No.8 shirt when signing in 2001.

Poyet thinks there is a possibility of another reunion for Lampard and the Blues, though he does not know when that will be.

"I think it's always a possibility because of many reasons; what he did for the club, how popular he is, he likes the coaching job and he keeps getting better with experience," said Poyet in an exclusive interview with football.london. "Maybe the Everton one was not great, but you learn a lot from those ones and you become better prepared.

"I'm sure it's a possibility in the future. When? I don't know. It was different the first time because he had to take the job - when Chelsea call you, you take the job.

"I'm sure that with more experience, you will know whether it's the right time. I'm happy for him that he found a purpose in coaching because sometimes when it doesn't work for you, too many people put your name in doubt.

"I don't think that Frank Lampard at Coventry is different to the Frank Lampard at Derby, to the one at Chelsea, or to the one at Everton. You get older and make different decisions but in terms of your personality and how you deal with the plan, I'm pretty sure it's the same.

"You cannot act, you cannot say that one year you are going to be brutal, one day you are going to be nice. It's you. From these experiences, you get better. It's nice when you are on the upside."