Frank Lampard: 5 Reasons Chelsea Still Needs the Veteran Midfielder

When Frank Lampard swapped West Ham United for Chelsea in 2001, who would have known what was in store for the then-23-year-old? Lampard has since made a name for himself, becoming arguably the best midfielder ever. Despite his unquestionable talent and ability, the Englishman, now 33, has been criticised of late by a section of Chelsea fans and football fans at large.

The critics’ view is that his best days are behind him and that he should be sold to create room for younger players. While Lampard’s critics may have a point, the England international is too big a star to be unceremoniously forced out of a club he has served with honour and respect for just under 11 years.

Here are some reasons why Chelsea fans should get behind the legendary midfielder, who still has a year left on his current contract, and hope that he sticks around as long as he can.

His Scoring Ability

Despite being a midfielder, Lampard has a goal-scoring record a top striker would be proud of. In his tenure at Chelsea, he has so far netted 182 times in 543 appearances in all competitions and is Chelsea’s all-time third top goal scorer.

In the Premier League, having made 522 appearances so far, he has scored an impressive 149 goals, 125 for Chelsea and 24 for West Ham. As proof of how good he is at putting the ball in the back of the net, Lampard is currently the fifth all-time top scorer in the Premier League and the highest goal-scoring midfielder.

His most recent goal, against Bolton in a 3-0 win, saw the former West Ham man become the first player in Premier League history to have scored 10 or more goals in nine consecutive seasons. That is impressive. Think of the Premier League’s greatest goal scorers, but none achieved this feat—not even Alan Shearer.

Despite being in and out of the starting XI during Andre Villas Boas’s time as Chelsea boss, he is currently the Stamford Bridge club’s leading top scorer with 12 goals in all competitions.

His Fitness

Injuries are always a blow, not just for a player, but also for his team. Can you imagine how heartbreaking it would be for Barcelona if Lionel Messi was ruled out for a year with an injury? Such is the drawback injuries bring about, especially when the player involved one of the key stars of the team.

Frank Lampard has, however, enjoyed an almost injury-free career at Chelsea. His most notable long-term lay-off was in the early stages of the 2010-11 season, when he spent over three months on the treatment table due to a hernia. That aside, his fitness level cannot be questioned, and he will therefore stay relevant at Chelsea based on his availability.

Experience

For a player who has made 740 club appearances, Lampard is vastly experienced. This is, however, a strength that is being unfortunately mistaken for a weakness by critics, who claim the midfielder has had his fun and should step aside for younger players.

Despite Chelsea’s need to replace a host of their aging stars with up-and-coming players, Lampard should never be considered one of those to give way. The Chelsea vice-captain is still needed in moulding a young and ambitious team capable of challenging the likes of Manchester United and Manchester City for top honours in England and Europe.

Consistency

Perhaps the major weakness that most players exhibit is their inability to keep producing fine performances week in and week out. Some players are known to give five-star performances in one or two games, and then go missing the next several matches. Frank Lampard is not one of the players that would come to your mind when you think of inconsistency.

The midfielder is one of the most consistent in Premier League history. He is the type of player that always steps up to the plate and does what he does best in each and every game he plays. As mentioned earlier, he is the most consistent 10-plus goals-a-season player in Premier League history. It's not just the goals. He averages over 10 assists a season, too.

His Hunger

Despite his age, Lampard still has the desire and hunger to keep playing at the highest level, for as long as he can, not just for Chelsea but for England, too. In a 2011 interview with Champions Magazine, he revealed he wanted to play until his late 30s. Lampard said:

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The way my body feels I’m certainly enjoying my football as much as I ever have. I’m hoping I can stay at the top level until my late 30s at least and emulate Ryan Giggs and Paolo Maldini. Maldini played for Italy for many, many years and remained competitive at both club and international level.

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This is perhaps the biggest factor behind his publicised falling out with former manager Andre Villas-Boas, as the Portuguese was unwilling to guarantee Lampard a regular run in the team. With a player as determined as Lampard, why would you want to see him let go?

And whilst the existence of players who could take over the Blues midfielder’s mantle, few would exhibit the passion and desire of Lampard. A perfect example is Manchester United’s Ryan Giggs, 38, and Paul Scholes, 37, who are still part of Sir Alex Ferguson’s plans. Why not Lampard, who is is much younger than the two Old Trafford veterans?