Will Frank Lampard be a success at Chelsea? Our experts give their verdict in Big Debate

Not many have lasted the length of their contract at Stamford Bridge, so does Lampard have the tools, after just one year in management, to do just that.

The club legend will surely be afforded some time to get things right, but results will determine his legacy.

Chelsea are in a state of relative turmoil, banned from signing players for two windows, and now without their best player of the last five years with Eden Hazard having packed his bags for Real Madrid.

Lampard though will replace the unpopular Maurizio Sarri and try to bring the feel-good factor back to the club. But will it work? Our experts have their say.

Tony Banks, Daily Express football corespondent

The key factor for Lampard is how much time will he be given to get his own team into shape and playing the way he wants.

With Eden Hazard gone, Chelsea now lack a world class match winner – and with a transfer ban still in place, they cannot go out and buy one. Yet.

So if and when he takes over, Lampard has to do it differently, for the first time under any manager at Chelsea since Roman Abramovich bought the club in 2003. All the others had money to spend, wherever they wanted. He has the money, but he cannot spend it.

The former Blues and England midfielder has a solid enough squad – though he needs to keep hold of Willian, who is a target for Barcelona and Atletico Madrid – but not one that looks anywhere near likely to challenge for the title in the near future, despite the arrival of Christian Pulisic. In fact he needs to keep hold of just about everyone.

But he does have other world class players in that squad, like N’Golo Kante, Kepa Arrizabalaga, Cesar Azpilicueta, Jorginho, Willian, David Luiz and Antonio Rudiger. None of them match winners though. It is up front where they will miss Hazard, who netted 21 goals last year.

So, again, Lampard will have to do it differently in terms of tactics and team shape. Will he restore Kante to his preferred central defensive midfield position? That would be for many a first step.

Under Lampard, Derby played a quick game, moving the ball sharply and getting it back quickly when they lost it, and they had plenty of pace. Expect more of that at Chelsea and less of the Maurizio Sarri possession game.

But where will the goals come from? Well, he will need Ruben Loftus-Cheek fit as soon as possible for goals from midfield.

Olivier Giroud is a willing worker up front but he is not prolific. So Callum Hudson-Odoi on the flanks he will also be needed back ASAP, and he will needs goals from Pedro and Willian. Several loan players will be returning, like Michy Batshuayi and Tammy Abraham, who may get a chance to plug the gap, and there is an option to recall Alvaro Morata from his loan deal at Atletico – but he has already made it clear he does not want too come back. So, issues to sort out there.

And then there are the ‘kids.’ Mason Mount and Fikayo Tomori, both of whom Lampard had at Derby, and Reece James, who did so well at Wigan. All are very likely to get a chance, though their new manager will know only too well if they are ready or not.

So. It will be different, no doubt about that. One thing is for certain though. Lampard will need time – not something that Abramovich generally gives his managers. The bottom line requirement is qualification for the Champions League again. So it will be interesting to see what happens if, under Lampard and Jody Morris, a young, but developing Chelsea team are lying tenth at Christmas.

Matthew Dunn, Daily Express football correspondent

Yes – although my idea of “success” might not mean quite what the Chelsea fans hope it does.

There will not be a return to the trophy-laden years of Lampard’s playing days. But then he is inheriting a club going nowhere – and that’s not just in terms of their stuttering ground redevelopment plans.

Chelsea are no long the financial sharks they once were, now they are swimming in a bigger pond with Manchester City and, to a lesser extent, United.

Indeed, the chances are there may not even be chance to make a transfer at all if UEFA’s wishes hold sway.

Lampard job will not be to bring trophies, but to bring direction. A younger Chelsea. A more personal Chelsea. A Chelsea with a mentality to which the fans can relate.

It needs to be revolution rather than evolution, with those young talents previous sent on loan mined to their full potential.

Lampard can galvanise that process with the backing of fans who love him and – unlike Maurizio Sarri, to his cost – the belief that, win or lose, he is doing the right thing for the club. It is a long-term project.

Success now means getting the club back on track and heading in a new direction before the whole project – post Eden Hazard – completely comes off the rails.

Jim Holden, Sunday Express Chief Sports Writer

Time. If Chelsea are willing to give Frank Lampard time and freedom to work his way, he can prove an inspired choice as manager.

Forget the sceptics who say he’s a rookie boss. He was a late starter in management with Derby at the age of 40 and he will have two valuable assets at Stamford Bridge — his intelligent authority as a football man and strong support from the fans.

The comparison with Pep Guardiola’s start at Barcelona after just one season in charge of their B team is valid.

Lampard looks a natural born manager, just as Guardiola did.

What he needs at Chelsea is time to play and develop the club’s outstanding young talents, as he did with Fikayo Tomori and Mason Mount last season at Derby.

If that happens, we could celebrate an English manager winning the Premier League in a couple of years’ time

James Benson, Assistant Online Sport News Editor

Yes, if he gets the time to make the squad his own and Roman Abramovich forgives his old confidante for the odd mistake.

Frank Lampard has a tough job on his hands once he takes charge at Stamford Bridge, particularly with Eden Hazard already gone.

Chelsea’s transfer ban compounds matters, with no incoming signings on the cards until at least the summer of 2020.

Lampard has shown plenty of potential as a manager thus far though and will have the crowd on side, no matter what happens.

Abramovich must give Lampard at least two years to put his stamp on Chelsea, even if it means the 2019/20 campaign isn’t as successful as he would hope for.

Lewis Winter, Sports reporter

Frank Lampard will be a success at Chelsea because he will be given more time by the hierarchy than previous managers at Stamford Bridge.

Not only because he’s the club’s all-time leading goalscorer but due to the transfer ban they are currently caught up in.

Lampard must make sure, following the departure of Eden Hazard to Real Madrid, no other top players leave the club this summer.

Chelsea’s best hope of success next season looks to be in the cup competitions again due to the gap between themselves and the Premier League’s top two last term of Manchester City and Liverpool.

Lampard must take faith from Tottenham’s performance in the Champions League last season where they reached the final after two transfer windows without spending a penny – the dilemma Chelsea now face.

If Lampard can manage to get Chelsea to finish in the top four again this season then he will be able to put his stamp on the squad in next summer’s transfer window and then they can put together a charge towards the Premier League title the following campaign.

Rhys Daly, Sports reporter

Frank Lampard’s return to Chelsea could signal a change in mentality that leads to a settled period of success.

Roman Abramovich has never been shy in calling for change in management and that has somehow proved to be extremely successful.

Chelsea have won every major trophy in English football since the Russian purchased the club in June 2003, but Lampard’s appointment could lead to a few seasons without silverware.

Because of his history at the club, Chelsea fans will be more patient with a manager than ever before, with the ban from registering players handing the 41-year-old even more breathing room.

I think Lampard will prove to be a successful manager at Stamford Bridge because both the owner and the fans will be willing to back him through thick and thin.

Adam Skinner, Sports reporter

I sincerely hope so as Lampard is a genuinely likeable character and not enough homegrown managers have been given a seat at the top table in the Premier League.

That being said, the job on hand at Chelsea would be a huge challenge even for the most experienced of coaches and a single season in the Championship will have done little to prepare him for what he is about to walk in to at Stamford Bridge.

No new signings, no Eden Hazard and a raft of disillusioned players about to return from various loan spells means he will have his work cut out from day one.

Lampard showed signs of encouragement with Derby in his first managerial post but finishing in the play-offs was the minimum requirement and let’s not forget they only just scraped in. When it really mattered in the final they fell short and he will soon find the Premier league to be an unforgiving beast.

However, if he is given the time that few before him at Chelsea have been afforded, I do believe he will be a success. Dampened expectations will help as fans do not expect to be challenging for the title next term and they will not get on his back like managers of the past if there a few hiccups along the way.

A top-four finish is probably par for Lampard and with the players already at the club – including a vast array of young talent that might finally be utilised – he should be capable of delivering that. If he can get through a tricky first season, Lampard could create a lasting legacy at Chelsea as both player and manager.

Konstantinos Lianos, Sports reporter

Frank Lampard is without a doubt one of Chelsea’s biggest legends but the club will be taking a substantial risk if they sign him as their next manager this summer.

Regardless of his successful first season at Derby, Lampard still needs more experience for a demanding job like that which has seen nine different proven managers coming and going in the last 10 years.

But of course nothing should be taken away from his impressive campaign in the Championship and that alone does indeed show talent if we consider how new he is in this part of the game.

The likes of Pep Guardiola, Luis Enrique and Bob Paisley had a less impressive record before their appointment for a top job which cemented them as some of the best managers in the world.

Lampard may be the wisest pick at this point as very few esteemed bosses would agree to take over a team that is banned from making any signings for a full term – pending the club’s appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport – and no longer has its best player Eden Hazard. Time is also an issue as Chelsea won’t want to leave everything too late like they did last season with Maurizio Sarri.

But maybe it is a little too early for Lampard as it would probably be wiser to let the Blues legend get more experience at Derby and consider this appointment when he is more ready, this way everyone wins.