Forget what you’ve heard: Frank Lampard is underrated.
Despite all the minutes and efforts and listicles afforded to praise of Lampard (Lampard the player; the manager doesn’t get nearly as much air-time on the praise show), the Chelsea midfielder is woefully underrated. That is less an indictment of the listicles as it is a result of the slow, near stealth-like fashion in which Lampard established himself as one of the best players in the world after his £11million move to Chelsea from West Ham.
Of the Premier League’s all-time statistics, Lampard ranks fourth in assists (102), sixth in goals (177) and third in appearances (609). No other Premier League player ranks in the top 10 of all three respective categories, not least the top six for all three. In isolation, they are elite-level stats. Together, they read like the ridiculous ending to a cheesy football film.
Lampard’s move from West Ham to Chelsea in 2001 was the springboard for his stellar career, and it’s in the blue of Chelsea that Lampard would become a world-beater.
Lampard’s 13 seasons at Stamford Bridge corresponded with the club’s most successful stint in 109 years. During Lampard’s Chelsea tenure, the Blues won three Premier League titles, four FA Cups, two League Cups, the Europa League and the crown jewel itself, the Champions League.
Lampard was integral in that unprecedented period of success which made Chelsea the universal footballing goliath it is today, fit with a deluged trophy cabinet and extraordinarily high standards. The pre-Abramovich signing hardly offered a harbinger of the success to come in his first or second seasons, with just seven and eight goals respectively. The then-23-year-old struggled to fill the boots of Gus Poyet.
Yet, under new manager Jose Mourinho, Lampard was made a focal point and helped to end the club’s 50-year wait for the league title.
From midfield, Lampard’s incredible ability to not only create space but exploit it - and then score from it - was, at times, unstoppable. But it was Lampard’s work ethic that cut him his legend. A methodical self-analyst and insatiable self-improver, Lampard pored over his performances to find areas in need of developing. His success is testament to the virtues of dedication and hard work that he placed at the forefront of his career.
Lampard made 429 appearances in total for Chelsea, writing himself into the club’s folklore and into the imaginations of fans across the globe. He became the club’s highest scorer of all time, netting 211 times from midfield over his 13 years in west London.
For just £11million, Lampard’s transfer more than paid for itself as he established himself a true legend of not only Chelsea but the Premier League. Yet, the effortless and often quiet manner in which Lampard did so, coupled with the subconscious ease in which Lampard's stats are trotted out today, threatens to undermine the sheer heights he reached.
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