Frank Lampard has said that he will never feel like he is saying goodbye to Chelsea as he prepares for the final game of his second spell in charge. Lampard’s short-term contract expires at the end of the season and a deal is in place for former Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino to take over in the summer. Despite the poor results Lampard has taken from his eight Premier League games, leaving the club 12th in the table going into the final game of the season at home to Newcastle United, he remains a crowd favourite at Stamford Bridge as a result of his stellar playing career, where he won 13 trophies in as many years and remains the club’s all-time leading goalscorer.
Lampard said: “I will never feel like I am saying goodbye to the fans. It will be the end of season and the end of my time back but normally when you leave a club you don’t have a hurrah as a manager. You are in one day, out the next and that’s fine. When you take on a managerial career it doesn’t mean you will be at a club you had 13 years at as a player forever. I certainly do appreciate the fans’ support on Sunday. More than anything I would love to give them a performance to take away for the summer and feel a bit more positive about.” He also added: “I’m quite calm about it and not too nostalgic. I will be back at Chelsea many times.”