Former Chelsea boss Frank Lampard confirmed as Everton Manager

The former Chelsea player and manager Frank Lampard has been appointed as the new manager of Everton following the recently sacked Rafael Benitez.

Lampard has signed a two-and-a-half-year contract with the Merseyside team and is now back in work for the first time since being sacked by his former side, Chelsea in January 2021.

Benitez was asked to leave the blue Liverpudlian team following a 2-1 defeat at Norwich. Everton currently sit 16th in the Premier League and are just four points above the relegation zone with only one win in their last 14 matches.

The Spanish manager, who has formerly worked for Everton’s greatest rivals Liverpool, had been in charge for just under seven months before being sacked.

In addition to Lampard, Everton also spoke to Vitor Pereira and the current caretaker manager Duncan Ferguson.

The former England international arrived at Everton’s Finch Farm training ground on Monday where it was expected that he would take first-team training for the first time.

Former Swansea and Derby manager Paul Clement will be a first-team coach and Lampard has also asked Ferguson to continue being part of the coaching team.

What has Frank Lampard said following the announcement?

In a statement following the announcement, Lampard said: “It is a huge honour for me to represent and manage a club the size and tradition of Everton Football Club.

“I’m very hungry to get started. After speaking to the owner, chairman and the board, I very much felt their passion and ambition. I hope they felt my ambition and how hard I want to work to bring it together.

“You can feel the passion Everton fans have for their club. That will be hugely important. As a team - the competitive level that the Premier League brings and the position we are in the table - we certainly need that. It’s a two-way thing.

“I think Everton is a unique club in that you can really understand what the fans want to see. The first thing they want is fight and desire and that must always be our baseline.

“My first message to the players will be that we have to do this together. We’ll try to do out job and I know the fans will be there backing us.”

What has Everton said?

The owner of Everton, Farhad Moshiri has said: “I am really delighted that Frank has joined us. He is an impressive young man on and off the pitch. He has played at the very highest level of the game and has football in his blood.

“He impressed us all greatly during the thorough interview process and we’re all ready to give him all of our support as he looks to give the team an immediate boost.

Bill Kenwright, the Everton chairman, added: “Frank impressed us greatly throughout our process, coming across as a modern, ambitious and exciting young manager. He expressed a clear vision on how he wants to take the club forward and, importantly, a tremendous passion and genuine enthusiasm to join us.

“I’m sure Evertonians will give him the special welcome that only they can and will be looking forward to giving him and his coaching staff a warm Goodison welcome next weekend.”

When is Lampard’s first game in charge?

Everton will play Brentford on Saturday 5 February in an FA Cup match at Goodison Park. The first Premier League match is an away fixture against Newcastle on Tuesday 8 February.

A message from the editor:

Thank you for reading. NationalWorld is a new national news brand, produced by a team of journalists, editors, video producers and designers who live and work across the UK. Find out more about who’s who in the team, and our editorial values. We want to start a community among our readers, so please follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, and keep the conversation going. You can also sign up to our newsletters and get a curated selection of our best reads to your inbox every day.