On Thursday, Chelsea announced the return of Frank Lampard as caretaker manager until the end of the season.

The Blues legend succeeds Graham Potter, who was at Stamford Bridge for just seven months and left them in 11th, 14 points off the top four.

“I saw how Robbie [Di Matteo} affected the group. Guus [Hiddink] had a great personal touch, a great football brain. I’d be stupid not to rely on things I felt were good. This is my club. I know there is a lot of talent in this squad.  I am excited to work with that talent and help them. That’s why I’m here.”

“I’m confident in myself and I’ve a good understanding of the squad – I’ve worked with many of them before – the training ground, the stadium and the fans. I will do my upmost in this period to give the fans what they want, with all my heart.” – Frank Lampard

Lampard returns to the club after being sacked in January 2021 by the previous ownership, but what does his appointment mean for Fantasy Premier League managers (FPL)?

Our Scout Report takes a closer look.

WHAT’S LAMPARD’S PREVIOUS AS MANAGER?

DERBY COUNTY

In his first foray into management, Lampard took charge of Derby County in May 2018, guiding them to the Championship play-off final in his only season at Pride Park. Of the 57 games he managed, he won 24, drew 17 and lost 16. Notable victories included domestic cup wins over Manchester United and Southampton, but they fell short in the play-off final, losing to Aston Villa.

Lampard inherited an ageing squad that had fallen short of promotion several times and deserves credit for nurturing youngsters like Fikayo Tomori, Mason Mount (£7.2m) and Harry Wilson (£5.7m). Still, his team converted mediocre metrics into a sixth-place finish, as they ranked 19th in the division for expected goals (xG).

CHELSEA

The following year, Lampard was appointed head coach at Chelsea, who he led to a top-four finish in the Premier League and the FA Cup final in his first season in charge. Notably, that was achieved under a transfer embargo, which meant the club were unable to replace Eden Hazard after his move to Real Madrid, instead developing young talents like Reece James (£5.8m), Mount and Tammy Abraham.

The Blues spent heavily the following summer, yet Lampard struggled to find a cohesive system and the wheels came off, falling to ninth in January, which led to his sacking. His reputation wasn’t helped by what followed, as Thomas Tuchel brought an immediate uplift in results, leading the same group of players to UEFA Champions League glory just four months after taking over.

However, unlike Derby, the underlying numbers offer support of Lampard’s work, particularly in 2019/20 (see below), as his Chelsea side had the second-best xG in the Premier League. They did severely underperform on the defensive side, mind, conceding 15 more goals than the expectation.

ATTACK

DEFENCE

EVERTON

Lampard was appointed Everton manager in January 2022 with the club 16th in the table, four points above the relegation zone. With one game remaining, he guided them to Premier League safety, but they fell into trouble again the following season, with a run of one win in 11 matches leaving them 19th by January.

It resulted in Lampard’s sacking after less than a year in charge at Goodison Park. His exit was inevitable, but for a period, he deserves credit for re-energising players such as Alex Iwobi (£5.1m), Anthony Gordon (£5.1m) and Richarlison (£8.4m), who were key to Everton staying up in 2021/22.

Still, the underlying numbers were poor throughout his time on Merseyside, ranking 16th for minutes per xG at the time of his departure, and lower still for minutes per xG conceded (19th).

WHAT TACTICS DOES LAMPARD PREFER?

Throughout his time at Chelsea, Lampard mostly used 4-3-3 and 4-2-3-1 formations, favouring an attacking style. The system incorporated attacking full-backs and wingers who played quite narrow, with at least one of his midfielders staying back.

His 2019/20 success came with the experienced trio of Jorginho (£5.7m), N’Golo Kante (£4.8m) and Mateo Kovacic (£4.9m) in the engine room, two of whom remain at the club, with Willian (£5.5m) the most consistent performer on the wing. However, the following campaign saw Mount displace Jorginho, pushing Kante back into a no. 6 role he never looked truly comfortable in.

When Lampard first arrived at Everton, he deployed a similar approach, only to then introduce a more cautious setup which focused on quick transitions and counter-attacks. In time, the shape changed too, as they moved to a 5-4-1/3-4-3. Still, the 4-3-3 is his most commonly used formation, and given Chelsea’s lack of goals throughout 2022/23, it’d be a surprise if he continues using his predecessor’s 3-4-3/wing-back system.

THE POTENTIAL WINNERS

Mason Mount has been a key player under Lampard at both Derby and Chelsea, winning the latter’s Player of the Season award in 2020/21. The 24-year-old has endured a difficult season amid injuries, a lack of form and speculation around his future, with his contract expiring next summer. However, there’s a real bond between the player and manager and we could potentially see him back in the starting XI at Molineux on Saturday.

The academy graduate was the focal point of Lampard’s midfield last time around, supplying seven goals and six assists in his first season. His underlying numbers up until Lampard’s sacking in January 2020/21 also catch the eye, especially creatively, as he ranked fourth for chances created and eighth for expected assists (xA).

“Mason has always been a fantastic player for me, from my days at Derby, the impact he had there, to when I came back to Chelsea. It’s with absolute pleasure that I’ve watched him and others that I coached in that period – like Reece James, Tammy Abraham, Fikayo Tomori and others – to have gone and been huge players either here or elsewhere.

With Mason I know he’s had a few slight injury problems as I understand it. The important thing for me will be to talk to him and find out where he’s at but I know what I get from Mason. So I just want to see him perform on the pitch and we have a good relationship so we’ll talk a lot. I think he’s a huge player for Chelsea and has been during his time here.” – Frank Lampard on Mason Mount

It’s fair to say Lampard also got the best out of Christian Pulisic (£5.6m), too, who thrived under his management during the pandemic. At one point, he scored seven goals in 11 games. He also found the net in the FA Cup final and made the shortlist for the Premier League Young Payer of the Year award, a far cry from his recent struggles. Chelsea aren’t exactly short on attacking players but they need inspiration up front, so Lampard might offer Pulisic an opportunity to stake his claim.

Elsewhere, Reece James is a player Lampard loves, handing him his Chelsea debut. He also signed fellow full-back Ben Chilwell (£6.0m) from Leicester for £45m in 2020. Both defenders played regularly in the half-season before he was sacked, with a stats comparison from that period below.

Other academy products, such as Conor Gallagher (£5.6m), could also get additional minutes under Lampard.

… AND LOSERS

Kepa Arrizabalaga (£4.7m) made several costly errors under Lampard in 2019/20 and was subsequently dropped when Edouard Mendy (£4.8m) was signed as his replacement. The Spaniard actually aimed a dig at Lampard last year, praising his successor Tuchel, so it doesn’t look too good for Kepa.

“We came from a not so elaborate game [with Lampard], we didn’t have to take the ball from behind, a less planned game, more to the free expression of the player, back and forth and less control. With Tuchel we have returned to control.” – Kepa Arrizabalaga

However, it does help his cause that Mendy is only just back from a shoulder injury, having last played a league match in Gameweek 16, so it’ll be interesting to see who Lampard favours.

If he chooses to play with four defenders, as expected, it’s hard to see Marc Cucurella (£5.0m) getting a look in, given Lampard’s admiration for Chilwell. The former Brighton and Hove Albion defender was the perfect player for Graham Potter, with his positional versatility allowing him to play either as a wing-back or on the left-hand side of a back three. Cucurella also made a bad defensive mistake in last weekend’s 2-0 loss to Aston Villa, so he could find his game time limited.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Lampard’s first game in charge will be at Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday, but the fixtures to follow look tough, with games against Brighton and Brentford on either side of Blank Gameweek 32. They also have a two-legged UEFA Champions League quarter-final against Real Madrid to contest in that same period.

Then, there is Arsenal, Manchester City and Newcastle United still to come, although Gameweeks 35 and 36 could potentially throw up some differential opportunities. It’s also worth noting Chelsea will probably have a Double Gameweek 37, with their trip to Old Trafford (originally in Gameweek 32) still to be rearranged.

Having won just three of their last 14 Premier League games, Lampard faces a real challenge to get Chelsea back on track. However, they are clearly better than the position they currently hold and it’s easy to see how results could start going their way, given that they’ve generated over 2.0 xG in each of their last three matches. Despite longer-term concerns, largely based on his tactical ability, with no real pressure, he might just be able to spark this Chelsea squad into life over a shorter period of time.

Lampard is generally an attack-minded manager, but they’ve scored just 29 in the Premier League this season. He previously used Kai Havertz (£7.6m) as a deep midfielder, winger and a no. 10, but he has been more of a centre-forward of late, so it isn’t immediately clear where he fits in, the same of which can be said of Joao Felix (£7.6m). However, they do have some excellent players in attack and certainly should be scoring more goals, so the situation is one to monitor.

Defensively, his sides have tended to be vulnerable at the back, but for owners of Kepa, James and Chilwell, they are probably worth holding onto a little while longer, especially in Gameweek 30. However, for those without any Chelsea assets, it might be better to observe from afar for a few weeks, given the schedule, then potentially making a move ahead of Gameweek 35, when it’s Bournemouth (a), Nottingham Forest (h) and Double Gameweek 37.