Frank Lampard booked as pundit for Chelsea's Champions League quarter-final before caretaker switch
Frank Lampard was supposed to attend Chelsea's Champions League tie against Real Madrid as a pundit instead of the club's manager.
Lampard, who was recently appointed as Chelsea's caretaker manager until the end of the season, was initially booked to provide commentary on his former employers for BT Sport alongside Darren Fletcher.
However, he was surprisingly lured back into management by Chelsea, signing on as caretaker manager until the end of the season while the Blues continue their search for a permanent boss.
With their Premier League campaign all but over - Saturday's 1-0 defeat to Wolves only added to the domestic misery at Stamford Bridge - Chelsea's focus is on the Champions League and the first leg of their quarter-final tie with Real Madrid.
It's a game Lampard was always due to attend anyway as Fletcher has now revealed that the current Chelsea caretaker was initially scheduled to do punditry work in Madrid before having to pull out.
"Frank Lampard was supposed to be with us in Madrid to do commentary for the Real Madrid vs Chelsea match with me," Fletcher told BBC 5 Live's Friday Football Social. "He sent me a message saying 'I'm supposed to be there working with you, and now I'm going to be on the line!'
"It's total madness that he was going to be there anyway. Now he's going to be there in a very important capacity, let alone watching it and analysing it!"
READ THE LATEST CHELSEA NEWS HERE
feed
Lampard's first game back in charge of Chelsea ended in disaster as the Blues put on a lacklustre showing en route to a 1-0 defeat to Wolves. Chelsea remain 11th in the table, having watched that position's previous occupants, Aston Villa, jump up to sixth after victories over Graham Potter's Blues, Leicester and Nottingham Forest.
Although the focus may be on the match against Real Madrid, Lampard is keen to build the team's confidence and pick up as many victories as possible, regardless of the competition.
When asked about his target for the season, Lampard said: "To install the highest confidence and we want to win as many games as we can. There are big games ahead of us, but we have to have a belief in the players, and I'll tell them that today."
He also explained that coming back to Chelsea was an easy decision for him, given his history with the club: "This is my club. In terms of my playing career and having coached here before, I have a lot of emotions and feelings towards the club. I'm also a very practical person."
LISTEN NOW
On this edition of Talking Transfers, part of the 90min podcast network, Scott Saunders, Graeme Bailey, Toby Cudworth & Tom Gott discuss Chelsea's decision to sack Graham Potter, Man City and Real Madrid's interest in Josko Gvardiol, the futures of William Saliba, Kai Havertz, Randal Kolo Muani & more!
If you can't see this embed, click here to listen to the podcast!