Frank Lampard has two main objectives as he makes his return to Chelsea and, of course, winning the Champions League would tick both boxes.
First, on a selfish note, he has to restore his own reputation as a manager after seeing it frazzled somewhat during his trying spell at Everton.
Then Lampard’s main aim as far as the club are concerned is to present Chelsea again as a more stable club which the world’s leading managers might want to join on a more permanent basis in the future.
It would dig Chelsea’s owners out of the sizeable hole they have dug for themselves with their brazen attempt to show association football how it should be run. Success in Europe’s premier competition would paper over all those cracks and could even land Lampard the role on a permanent basis again.
But failing that, there is a whole list of genuine snags that the interim head coach has to attend to...
1 Rebuild confidence in front of goal
Chelsea’s problem against Liverpool on Tuesday was not creating chances, but taking them. Under his previous tenure, Chelsea averaged nearly two goals every game - that ratio had virtually halved under Graham Potter.
It does not help that the club’s only recognised goalscorer Romelu Lukaku is on loan to Inter Milan, but Raheem Sterling needs to be cajoled into taking more responsibility and Joao Felix needs some end product to go with some promising forward play.
2 Manage the egos
Real Madrid is the sort of game nearly £600m-worth of talent came to Stamford Bridge to play in. On Tuesday, Lampard will tell all bar 11 of his vast squad that they are not selected.
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The former England international was left out of enough high-profile matches towards the end of his career to know what that feels like, but somehow he needs to harmonise the inflated self-opinions of an over-crowded dressing room.
3 Rediscover Mount’s mojo
It is hard to put a finger on why, but Chelsea seem to play better when Mount is in the team and on top of his game. Lampard played a huge part of his development at Derby and then Chelsea, so perhaps he can unlock that particular enigma once again.
4 Keep Kante fit
Simple. Just his first start since August on Tuesday night was enough to show how different Potter’s reign might have been had he been fit this season. Still a mighty presence in midfield at the age of 31.
5 Get the fans back onside again
Regular chants of Abramovich’s name in recent games has shown the new owners that money can’t buy you love. Nor can years of dedicated service, and Lampard’s presence at the club as a playing legend will not be enough to win supporters over.
Lampard needs to show there is again a sense of direction in an organisation that has flailed around wildly since Abramovich’s assets were first frozen just over a year ago.
He can do this by adding some heart to the performances and restoring a touch of the Chelsea swagger that has been missing this season.
Lampard’s belief in younger home-grown players may also help to build a more communal spirit.
