Manchester City aren't exactly hesitant when it comes to making moves in the transfer market.
The Blues have been flexing their financial muscle for well over a decade now. A lot of their signings have proved to be absolute masterstrokes, some have been pretty rubbish and a few have just made no sense whatsoever.
One player whose Etihad arrival undoubtedly falls into the last of those three categories is Frank Lampard.
Having said an emotional farewell to Chelsea in 2014, it appeared that Lampard had signed for New York City FC, only to then provide us with one of the most bizarre moves ever as he joined the MLS side's parent club City.
So, with City and Chelsea set to clash on Saturday, it's only right that we look back at Lampard's time at City.
In the latest MEN Facebook Live, City is Ours writer Alex Brotherton was accompanied by David Mooney of the Blue Moon Podcast as the duo discussed Lampard’s short stint at the Etihad.
DM : “At the time, there was absolutely no reason that I could see Manchester City going in for Lampard.
"He had a better than good career at Chelsea and I figured if Chelsea haven’t offered him a contract extension then there would be no reason for City to because these two teams are looking at the same level and quality of player - and then City go and offer him a deal.
“It gets muddied by the details that came around it because they announced he'd signed for New York City and was joining Manchester City on loan for the first half of the season, and then you get to Christmas where [Manuel] Pellegrini was asked if he was hoping to keep Lampard on.
“They had to come clean and say he never actually signed for New York. He'd signed a one-year deal here at City and then he’s going to sign for New York.
"That was a bit off but then after having all of that blown up, he only played three times in the second half of that season so there was actually no point in him being there at that stage.
“The first half of the season, don’t get me wrong, he did well for City and was a good asset for the team but he was 34 at the time.
"There weren't a lot of legs left in the tank and we got the memorable moments like the goal against Chelsea, and he got the winner at Leicester as well and one of the goals in the win at Hull. There were good moments from him but the initial signing of him I thought was a bit odd.”
AB : “He certainly did a job when he played. Obviously, he didn’t play that much but I can never remember him dropping a stinker.
"That second half of the season, things unravelled quite a bit so it wasn’t like he stood out but I wouldn’t say any of the struggles they had were down to him or anything like that.
“He obviously had a lot of quality but it was quite funny because it almost seemed like City were trying to avoid causing aggravation with the transfer because it was quite a contentious thing - a Chelsea legend goes to join the team who were fighting Chelsea for the title.
“I’ve never wanted someone to celebrate a goal more against their old team than Lampard. It was probably stupid of me to expect it but you can’t blame him really. I remember that game and the Chelsea fans were singing his name which was a nice moment.”
What did you think of Lampard’s time at Chelsea? Follow our City Is Ours trends writer Anil Kandola, writer Alex Brotherton and the Blue Moon Podcast's David Mooney on Twitter and let us know your thoughts in the comments section below
.png?w=600)
