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Football London
Football London
Sport
Oliver Harbord

What Frank Lampard's head coach title actually means and what his role at Chelsea will entail

Chelsea supporters can finally celebrate this morning as the Blues finally appointed Frank Lampard as their new head coach.

It has been the announcement that Blues fans have been waiting so long for and eventually they have grabbed the club legend from Derby County.

But once again the role is not of 'manager' but of 'head coach'.

When it comes to Chelsea, what does that actually mean for Lampard and what control will he have throughout his time at the Blues.

Lampard signed a three-year deal at the club, hoping to last longer than the two previous coaches, Antonio Conte and his predecessor Maurizio Sarri.

But the fact that Lampard is once again a head coach, means that his say will be more about what happens on the pitch, rather than in the transfer market.

Chelsea's system means that they have the board to decide on the transfers and negotiations, while any wanted targets are requested through to them.

New Chelsea manager Frank Lampard signs his contract (Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images)

When Conte was the head coach and the Blues had Michael Emenalo as the technical director, then the Italian would go through Emenalo with his requests.

However, when Emenalo left in 2017, then Conte would go directly to Granovskaia. However, that is where the friction began, with Conte unhappy in not getting some of his top choices.

With Sarri in charge, He would give his top options to Granovskaia and she would then look to secure one of his choices.

However, this season could be back to the old model.

Before Lampard, Petr Cech has also returned as the technical & performance advisor. While Cech, like Lampard, is fairly new in the role, his early responsibilities will be about player development.

However, that is expected to expand over time to also include transfers, and a strong working relationship with Cech is going to be vital.

With the transfer ban still looming over Chelsea as well, it also means that the Blues will allow that situation to develop.

But for Lampard, his position as head coach means that his focus will be on what happens on the pitch and the development of the players.

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