Frank Lampard - Champions of England (part i of v)
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Loading ...Such was the insanity of last season we have never really taken stock of what Frank Lampard has achieved at this club. To try and somehow do him justice Daryl Williams (@Dazcfc1990) and Marc Dray (@MarcDray) have chronicled his journey from £11m gamble to unquestionable legend. Here is part one - Champions of England.
Frank’s signing was met with mixed reviews back in 2001. Some said that we had paid over the odds for an average midfielder. £11m was a lot of money 12 years ago, and with Chelsea in such a poor financial state, it’s fair to say the purchase was a risk. Chelsea, however, could consider themselves lucky as Aston Villa had been highly interested in the player. West Ham even rejected a bid of £15m for Lamps and Kanoute from them.
Lampard slotted straight into the starting XI in a midfield that, over the coming years, would look desolate without the name ‘Lampard’ in it. He started every Premier League game in his first season and racked up 7 goals overall, his first strike coming in a 3-0 win over Bulgarians, Levski Sofia in the UEFA Cup.
The nickname ‘Fat Frank’ had been earned after leaving West Ham, due to his larger physique, but throughout the second season he was, again, a regular feature and started every league game for the club. He also bettered his goal tally by one, notching a total of 8 goals over the 2002/03 campaign.
It hadn’t taken long for Frank to win the Chelsea fans over. He’d showed that his high price tag was worth paying and we had an ever present, ever reliable player who could also pop up with a goal here and there. However, after all his and the teams efforts in those two seasons, all we had to show for it was an FA Cup runners up medal and a place in the Champions League qualifying round.
Lampard had shown potential, but he would really take off once Mr Abramovich turned up and pumped a few pennies into the clubs coffers.
After sealing qualification to the Champions League on a dramatic final day at home to Liverpool in 2003, the club’s future was in doubt due to a huge amount of debt, said to be in the region of £140m. It was suggested in later years that we were mere days from going out of business, which doesn’t even bear thinking about. Roman and his multi-billions came to our rescue by buying the club from Ken Bates and wiping out all the debts in the process. From the brink of extinction, we now had funds at our disposal that had never been seen in the football world. Over £100m worth of talent was brought into the club, with Frank amongst others concerned about how they would fit into this new revolution.
In Roman’s first season we came second to the ‘Invincible’ Arsenal side and were knocked out, poorly, of the Champions League by a Fernando Morientes inspired Monaco. On the positive side of things, Lampard had almost doubled his goal tally from the previous season to 15 and was, again, an ever present on the team sheet. This said a lot about the 24 year old. Chelsea had an unlimited budget and Ranieri had seen fit that Lampard was the best option available. In a team that now consisted of players such as Makelele, Crespo, Mutu, Veron, Duff and Joe Cole, Lampard stood head and shoulders above everyone else.
The end of Roman’s first season as owner of The Blues saw Ranieri ousted as manager. Although a popular figure in most Chelsea fans’ eyes, he was a ‘nearly’ man, not a winner. Jose Mourinho recognised this, and upon his arrival in 2004, he decided that, again, there would be no need to replace Lampard.
After a few games of the 2004/05 season, it was clear that Lampard was thriving in the attacking role of the midfield three. Makelele was holding in front of the back four, Tiago breaking up play and getting the ball forward, giving Lampard the freedom to play further up the field, in what sometimes looked like a second striker.
That campaign in general was something to remember for Chelsea fans all over the world. Mourinho had installed an incredible spirit into the squad, shown in the classic against Barcelona at Stamford Bridge and the battle at Blackburn in February. Say what you like about Russian oil money, but the determination and togetherness in this side was something to admire.
Frank was at the forefront of everything as we steamrolled the competition on the way to a League Cup win and our first league title in 50 years. He finished with 19 goals and was voted the Football Writers player of the year. Some of the goals were quite spectacular. None more so than the unbelievable Bayern Munich strike, where he turned on a sixpence to fire in with his left foot on the half volley after taking the ball on his chest.
Despite there being many to choose from, nothing would compare to the feeling of the two goals Frank scored at the Reebok. On the 30th April 2005, Chelsea headed to Bolton knowing that three more points would be enough to secure the title. We were well clear, everybody knew it was just a matter of time, but still had that nervous feeling looking on. It looked as if it had rubbed off on the players as they put in a pretty lacklustre display in the first half.
The second was a different story though. The team upped the ante and pushed on in search of that glorious moment. As he’d done all season, Lampard stepped up to provide it. Cutting inside from the left of the penalty area, he smashed a right foot shot low into the near post to send the Chelsea faithful into frenzy. “Chelsea are half an hour from the title” were the words bellowed in commentary. We were almost there.
Things were a bit nervy for the next 20 minutes or so, before Bolton whipped in a corner. The ball was cleared to Makelele, who looked up to see Carvalho and Lampard bursting past the half way line looking for a pass. Maka provided it, and it was Frank who raced clear towards the Bolton goal. There was never any doubt what was going to happen from there. Will he roll it to his right for Carvalho to tap in? Not a chance. He coolly rounded the keeper and slotted it in with his left foot. “He’s done it, give Chelsea the title.” What a feeling. Pretty much the entire squad mobbed him in front of the travelling fans, and after a few minutes that was it. Chelsea – Champions of England.
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