Frank Lampard fears Chelsea could be left behind by Manchester giants – leaving owner Roman Abramovich fuming and Eden Hazard with itchy feet
Blues legend warns that the Stamford Bridge owner will not accept second best and is worried top stars could be tempted to leave
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FRANK LAMPARD fears Chelsea could get left behind by the Manchester giants and warns that Roman Abramovich will not settle for second best.
The Stamford Bridge idol believes his former club have surrendered their Premier League crown by failing to match their title rivals in the transfer market this season.
And he is concerned that stars such as Eden Hazard could soon get itchy feet if the club are unable to maintain their impeccable standards.
Lampard, regarded by many as the greatest player in Chelsea’s history during his 13 years at the club, said: “City and United have blown everyone else out of the water in terms of their spending in the last two years.
“Chelsea have the power to match them but it’s something they haven’t particularly done in recent years.
“Don’t get me wrong, they’ve spent good money. It’s not as if they’ve suddenly stopped buying players.
“But other clubs are spending more and they have to be careful not to get left behind.
“The manager isn’t happy and he obviously feels his squad is a bit thin to battle on so many different fronts.
BLUES' ANT JIBE RAGE Chelsea furious with Antonio Conte after latest outburst over transfer policy
“And I think he’s been proved correct to a degree because when you win the title and then lose big players like Costa and Matic, you have to recruit to move forward because everyone else is doing that.
“Antonio Conte certainly seems frustrated. He doesn’t mince his words and he’s been pretty honest about how he feels.
“He wanted to add to the squad and he speaks about how it’s not his business as to who gets signed.
“I don’t know where things are headed long-term but I think the club and manager will need to sit down in the summer to sort things out.”
Lampard, 39, won 11 major trophies as a Chelsea player and has seen how billionaire owner Abramovich drives the club forward.
He added: “Mr Abramovich is not the sort of person to accept just finishing in the top four. That’s why the club have been so successful over the last 15 years.
“Chelsea spent something like £190million last summer but the landscape is constantly changing and you have to spend even more these days if you’re going to get the top players.
“But I do believe the club will react to the challenge of the Manchester clubs and continue to fight for the major titles.
“If standards drop, of course questions get asked about your ability to keep your best players. So you don’t want to get to that point and I don’t think it will happen at Chelsea.
“Eden Hazard is the centre-piece of the club and has been the catalyst for their very good performances over the last 18 months.
“Players will move on but hopefully not Hazard. Chelsea have to try to keep him and build the team around him.”
With Chelsea 15 points behind leaders Manchester City and facing Barcelona in the next round of the Champions League, things are not going to get easier any time soon for Conte and his players.
Lampard spent the final years of his distinguished career at the Etihad and has been blown away by Pep Guardiola’s team this season.
Lamps added: “City have been by far and away the best team and will deservedly go on to win the league.
“I had a really pleasurable year there and there was always a long-term vision to keep the club improving, whether it be the training ground, stadium, academy or the first team.
“I could see that the club was going places but no one could have predicted how great they were going to be under Pep Guardiola this season.”
And no player gets the Lampard nod of approval more than his former Chelsea team-mate Kevin De Bruyne.
Lamps enthused: “He’s beautiful to watch at the moment. Everything he does is brilliant and I’ll be very surprised if he doesn’t win Player of the Year.
“Every pass he makes seems to be the right one.
“People talk a lot about assists when a player whips in a corner or plays a simple sideways pass.
“But so many of Kevin’s assists are incredible slide-rule passes.
“Kevin could have taken the easy option by staying at Chelsea for the money but he went away to Germany and has come back to the Premier League and really shown his character.”
Yet for all City’s incredible dominance this season, Lampard is convinced Guardiola’s team will not be allowed to have things all their own way.
Lamps up in lights
LEGENDS of Football is one of the sport’s most prestigious charity awards and events — and this year is to induct England, Chelsea, West Ham, Manchester City and New York City legend Frank Lampard into its roll call of all-time greats.
Lampard is joining the likes of John Charles, Sir Stanley Matthews, Brian Clough, Sir Bobby Robson, Sir Alex Ferguson, Kenny Dalglish, Alan Shearer, Eric Cantona and last year’s recipient Steven Gerrard.
Sponsored by hmv, Legends Of Football has raised over £7million for music therapy charity Nordoff Robbins since its first event in 1997.
The charity is dedicated to changing the lives of vulnerable and isolated people. The event is on Monday October 8 and tickets are available from
He predicted: “The signing of Alexis Sanchez will give Manchester United an extra dimension.
“He can bring the kind of spark to the club which Eric Cantona provided all those years ago. You can talk about how much he’s costing United but, in terms of the player, Sanchez is world class.
“I love watching him play, his balance, his turn, his skill and his competitive edge.
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“United have some very good players and they’re a solid team. But Sanchez will add an extra edge.
“The Sanchez deal asks questions of all the other top six teams and challenges them to match it.
“With the current TV deal and the quality already at the big clubs, the top six are all fairly evenly matched and that kind of competition is great for the Premier League.
“Manchester City are dominating this season and it’s up to the others to stop them.”