More than a few thoughts on Frank Lampard being sacked by Chelsea [Thread].

First off, I have no perspective when it comes to Frank Lampard. He is simply my favourite living person. I would’ve seen us relegated before I’d ever ask for him to be sacked.

It’s not just that he’s our all-time top scorer or that he won absolutely everything there is to win in a blue shirt or even that he is, in my opinion, our greatest ever player. It’s what he represented.

Lampard was naturally talented but not like Hazard or Zola. Everything he achieved came from hard work and determination, on & off the pitch. The absolute fearless & relentless determination to be the best that he could possibly be & for his team to win every match they could.

For me, this is best summed up by a moment in 2008 when, just a few days after his mother had died, Frank stood up to take a vital penalty that took Chelsea to the Champions League final. Nobody would have questioned him not taking it in the circumstances, but he didn’t hesitate.

I was there that evening & I’ve honestly never experienced anything like that moment in a football stadium, before or since. The emotion was incredible, grown men crying all because we were so proud of our brother or our son.

That’s why seeing him sacked is so painful today. It’s not just that the decision is, for me, absurd. Last season’s achievements were a miracle given the circumstances he had to work in. Every manager goes through this dip with us, they all probably deserved more time.

No, it’s that, for Chelsea fans, Frank Lampard as manager represented more than just football. It represented an idea; that successful teams could be built from the ground up, it wasn’t all about importing and manufacturing success.

It said that football clubs still had a soul, that emotion still had a place in this game, that footballing dynasties were still possible and that the connection the club has with the fans still actually meant something.

Whether we go on to be successful under a new manager or not, Chelsea lost a part of ourselves today and it may be something we never get back. I wish Frank the very best and hope that one day we’ll see him back with us again, though I doubt we'll deserve him.