TV host James Corden helped persuade Chelsea owner Todd Boehly to appoint Frank Lampard as interim coach at Stamford Bridge.
After dispensing with the services of Graham Potter earlier in the week, the Blues surprisingly turned to former boss Lampard – just months after his dismissal at Everton and two years since he was dismissed by Boehly’s predecessor Roman Abramovich in west London.
Lampard is now back at the club as caretaker manager until the end of the season while they conduct the search for Potter's permanent successor. His first match back in the dugout brought a disappointing 1-0 defeat for the Blues against Wolves on Saturday.
The dismissal of Potter and the club not immediately appointing a permanent successor created a period of flux at the Blues last week. The first-team was immediately coached by Bruno Saltor – part of Potter’s coaching staff – for the draw against Liverpool, but there was no longer-term plan.
That preceded the club surprisingly turning to Lampard and it has now emerged that Corden – a fan of West Ham who has become friendly with Boehly – played a role in the club’s appointment, after offering his advice that Lampard would be a good fit.
Corden works on Sky programme A League Of Their Own in which Lampard’s cousin Jamie Redknapp is a team captain. This has allowed Corden to become familiar with Lampard, and this friendship appears to have benefitted the returning Blues boss – as the Sun credit Corden’s influence as significant in his appointment by Boehly.
Have Your Say! Who will be managing Chelsea next season? Tell us what you think here.
Lampard lamented Chelsea ’s performance after Saturday’s loss at Molineux: "In terms of the performance, in the first-half I thought we were slightly off the pace. You could feel Wolves were aggressive, fighting for their Premier League status. I felt they had a little bit more aggression in their game.
"That's something I said to the players at half-time. I think we corrected that slightly in the early parts of the second-half, but at that point, you're 1-0 down."
Lampard added: He added: "We have been working here for one or two days and it's about getting an understanding of that and the mindset of the team.
"There has been a lot of change and that's not an excuse but things need to improve and I think that performance summed it up. I have to get an understanding of it. When I say mindset, it's not necessarily a negative. You have to get used to winning and make it a habit. Credit to Wolves today, they were physical and stuck in for a win.
"We will work and recreate. We will get into those positions and repeat it. Maybe there's a feeling you won't score. I've been there before and as a club we need to address it.
"It's not where the club wants to be but it's the reality and we have to work through it. You have to get to a point where you can move forward. We need to lift it more than we did today."
