Frank Lampard could be set to haunt Chelsea by poaching one of the most important members of their coaching team.
The Blues’ legend looks set to become the next Everton manager, in what will be his first managerial role since he was ruthlessly sacked by the reigning Champions League holders last year.
Sky Sports News claims Lampard has been formally offered the managerial position at Goodison Park, after impressing the Toffees in a second interview with the club.
Former Porto manager Vitos Pereira and current Derby County manager Wayne Rooney have also been in the running to replace the sacked Rafael Benitez, but Lampard appears to be the unassailable front-runner.
And the 43-year-old could be about to strike a huge blow to current Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel, as reports from the Athletic suggest Lampard wants to poach Anthony Barry from his backroom staff.
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Lampard coaxed Barry into his backroom team at the very beginning of his second year in charge of the club.
The former Everton youth academy prospect moved to west London after a three year spell working with Paul Cook at Wigan Athletic.
However, Lampard’s departure from Stamford Bridge did not result in Barry following suit, as Tuchel convinced him to stay at the club.
Barry was also tempted by approaches from Cardiff City, Aberdeen, and Tranmere Rovers, but decided to continue his work at the Blues under Tuchel’s stewardship.
And if the German manager’s previous quotes about Barry are anything to go by, then he would be very disappointed if he chose to leave the club.
“It is a good sign when Andreas starts to score — and I think our set piece coach, Anthony Barry, can be very, very proud!” Tuchel once wrote in his program notes after Andreas Christensen scored his first goal for Chelsea.
Lampard also went out of his way to highlight Barry’s impact on Chelsea’s set-pieces.
In the later stages of his reign at the club, Lampard lavished extra praise on the coach and hailed the improvements the Blues’ saw on the defensive and attacking phase of their set-pieces.
“He’s been a real positive for the group dynamic, and in all senses," Lampard said to the official Chelsea website in the later stages of his reign.
"He’s certainly helped on set-pieces, but he’s very diligent, he pays so much attention to ourselves and the opposition in every part of the game, from what we do in the office, to studying opposition and working on the training field.
"It’s very important you have balance within staff, and what Anthony has given us is another person and another level of expertise that I can call upon, and a work ethic that is outstanding."
Lampard is believed to have used his time away from football to productively assemble a brand new back-room team in preparation for his next venture.
He had previously been linked with the manager jobs at Norwich City, Crystal Palace, and Newcastle United, but moves never transpired for the Premier League trio.
Gareth Southgate’s No.2 man at England and former Chelsea assistant manager Steve Holland is also believed to be in Lampard’s line of sight.
