Lampard rumoured to be leaving the club at the end of the season.
Former Chelsea manager Gianluca Vialli believes that midfielder Frank Lampard should leave the club at the end of the season.
Lampard, 34, is out of contract this summer but more recent speculation has suggested that he may extend his stay at the club with the return of former boss Jose Mourinho.
However, Vialli believes it is the right time for the two parties to split but hopes Lampard can write himself into the history books and become their all-time top scorer before he departs.
“In my opinion it’s probably the right time for them to say goodbye to each other and leave on good term,” he told Sky Sports News.
“Frank has a fantastic opportunity to try something new, perhaps in Los Angeles or somewhere else in America, have fun for the next three of four years and make some money.
“Then one day he could perhaps come back to Chelsea as a hero. I really hope he scores a few more goals to become their top-scorer in the history of the club,” he concluded.
Lampard is perched one shy of Bobby Tambling’s club record of 202 goals, and while he is expected to be offered a new 12-month deal at the Bridge, no offer has yet been offered to the player.
His more immediate concern will be how many games he will have the opportunity to pass Tambling’s record, with Rafa Benitez suggesting he is only guaranteed a place in his starting line-up in this weekend’s trip to Aston Villa and perhaps not in the Europa League final against Benfica.
Since joining the club in 2001, Lampard has gone to become a real fans favourite at Stamford Bridge. However, his involvement this season has been reduced under Benitez and it is unclear as to how Mourinho’s return would effect his standing.
The lure of playing abroad for a final mega-money pay-day is likely to feature in his thinking this summer, and Vialli believes it would be the right time for the England international to venture away from west London.
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