Former England manager Sam Allardyce believes Frank Lampard will eventually go on to bigger and batter things in management but cannot envisage a return to Chelsea any time soon.
After difficult spells at Everton and Chelsea, Lampard has rebuilt his reputation at Coventry City and on Sunday celebrated winning the Championship title.
A return to the Premier League, after a 25-year absence, had already been guaranteed following a successful promotion campaign masterminded by the Chelsea legend.
The current upheaval at Stamford Bridge inevitably sparked speculation that the 47-year-old could be set for another return to his spiritual home where Calum McFarlane is in temporay charge following the sacking of Liam Rosenior who spent just 106 days in the hot seat.
Allardyce, however, feels a bigger job is potentially in the offing for Lampard with the prospect of managing England not too remoted a prospect.
‘I don’t think Frank Lampard is destined to go back to Chelsea anytime soon, especially under this current regime,’ he told BOYLE Sports and Footy Accumulators’ podcast, No Tippy Tappy Football.
‘I do think that, if he’s managing a Premier League club in the future and doing well, he’d be a good candidate for the England job.
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‘If you look back at his first stint at Chelsea when they had a transfer ban, he developed young players like Reece James and Mason Mount and gave them a chance – although he didn’t really have a choice given the financial circumstances he was under.’
Lampard, meanwhile, says Coventry must stay a ‘special place’ after the Sky Blues celebrated Sky Bet Championship title glory with a party after victory over Wrexham.
‘It felt like a family day for the players and staff and for the fans to enjoy without the stresses of trying to go up or becoming title winners,’ Lampard said after late goals from Victor Torp and Ephron Mason-Clark secured Coventry’s 27th league win of the season and a 3-1 victor over Wrexham.
‘It needs to remain a special place because it’s been an incredibly supported club in the city, the tradition and history.
‘There wasn’t that feeling when I came in – and I know Mark (Robins) had done incredible work as a manager here – because of a lack of confidence and connection at the club.
‘But we built that in the second half of last season to where it’s a serious football club in this league, and you have to do that if you haven’t been a Premier League team recently to go up. To be 12 points clear is amazing.’
Lampard appreciates the ‘landscape’ at Coventry will change next season due to the demands of the Premier League and the probability the Sky Blues squad will be reshaped.
But for now he is focused on what winning the Championship title means for Coventry and where it ranks in his own celebrated career.
‘It compares with every trophy I’ve lifted, they’re all amazing. The first one at Bolton (for Chelsea) in terms of the League. The Champions League is extra special because of the stage that it is.
‘I can’t put it down in any way because it’s a collective effort and I know the hard work that has gone in to it.’