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England and Chelsea legend Frank Lampard closing in on shock managerial return

Frank Lampard has been out of management since the end of the 2022/23 season (Photo: Getty)

England and Chelsea legend Frank Lampard looks set to return to the dugout at Championship side Coventry City, according to reports.

Lampard has been out of work since his disastrous spell as Chelsea interim manager came to an end following the 2022-23 season and had been linked with a move to Roma.

The former Three Lions midfielder has long been keen on revitalising his managerial career and was even recently tipped to replace Julen Lopetegui at boyhood club West Ham.

But it is now reported that Lampard is the heavy favourite to take the reins at Coventry, with club owner Doug King keen on acquiring his services.

The Mirror say King wants an ‘established name’ to replace Mark Robins who was surprisingly sacked last week after seven-and-a-half years at the CBS Arena.

Lampard, 46, could be appointed over the international break, and if so his first game in charge will be at home against high-flying Sheffield United on November 23.

With the Sky Blues, Robins won promotion from League Two, the League One title and in 2023 reached the Championship play-off final, missing out on a heroic return to the Premier League after losing to Luton Town on penalties.

Coventry sacked Mark Robins after over seven years in charge (Photo: Getty)

Last season, they reached the FA Cup semi-finals where they battled from 3-0 down to level against Manchester United before losing the penalty shootout.

At the time of his dismissal, Coventry were 17th in the table, albeit only seven points off the play-offs, and many fans and pundits have questioned the decision.

Lampard began his managerial career in the Championship with Derby County in 2018, guiding the Rams to the play-off final where they lost to Aston Villa in his first and only season.

He then made an emotional return to Stamford Bridge, but after a promising start, which included a run to the FA Cup final, the Blues’ form fell away and he was axed in January 2021.

A year at Everton went a similar same way – he steered the Toffees away from relegation but failed to build on the good start – and by the time of his sacking in January 2023 he had a win percentage of just 27.

Just a few months later he returned to Chelsea as interim manager following Graham Potter’s sacking but it proved a disastrous comeback, winning just one of his 11 matches in charge, with Chelsea finishing in the bottom-half of the Premier League for the first time since 1996.

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