Chelsea target, Declan Rice, in action for West Ham United. (GETTY Images)
Speaking to ESPN, former Chelsea manager Frank Lampard has admitted that he was desperate to sign Declan Rice while he was at the club.
Lampard had an eighteen-month spell as the manager of Chelsea. Having taken over the reins at the Bridge in the summer of 2019, the former midfielder led the club to a top-four finish with no new signings owing to the club’s transfer ban.
This past summer saw owner Roman Abramovich open the chequebook as Lampard and Chelsea went on a major spending spree, signing the likes of Hakim Ziyech, Timo Werner, Kai Havertz, Ben Chilwell, Thiago Silva among others.
However, Lampard has now confirmed that despite all these additions, he was particularly intent on securing the transfer one player – West Ham United’s Declan Rice.
Rice spent time at Chelsea’s academy before making the switch to West Ham and has made huge strides at the East London outfit. A regular for club and country now, the Englishman is one of the best defensive midfielders on display in the Premier League.
And, Lampard has confirmed that he was very much keen to work with the England international at Chelsea. But a move never materialized.
“I’ve probably given it away in how I’ve spoken about him. He is certainly a player I admire. It is common knowledge I was a big fan of his. It didn’t happen for various reasons. We obviously brought players in in the summer and it didn’t happen. But I was a big fan of his.
“For understandable reasons as well, West Ham are understanding of the player they have on their hands.”
Lampard was shown the doors after a poor run of results at the turn of the year saw Chelsea slip down to ninth place in the Premier League. Under his successor, Thomas Tuchel, the club has seen an upturn of form and are very much in contention for a top-four finish.
As far as Rice goes, Chelsea’s interest in him ended with Lampard’s tenure at the Bridge.
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