Paul Merson has urged Todd Boehly to make an immediate managerial decision in order for Chelsea to prepare aptly for the 2023/24 season. Frank Lampard returned to the club he played for and previously managed on an interim basis following the dismissal of Graham Potter, but in the four games he's taken charge of, Chelsea are winless.
The 2022/23 season can largely be considered redundant now that the Blues have been knocked out of the Champions League at the hands of Real Madrid. The second leg at Stamford Bridge was contested on Tuesday evening with the Blues beaten 2-0 despite missing several glorious chances.
In the background of Chelsea's disappointing campaign, Boehly and the team he has assembled likely face their biggest decision since completing a takeover of the club in May 2022. Luis Enrique and Julian Nagelsmann have both been in London for face-to-face talks new manager talks, while Mauricio Pochettino has also been contacted.
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Nagelsmann has since emerged as the front-runner for the vacancy in west London, football.london understands, but Boehly will not rush the process of appointing a successor to lead the club forward.
Although the decision to bring Lampard in for a temporary role seemingly showed that no permanent appointment was imminent, Merson has told Boehly the importance of making a managerial decision now is paramount.
"They need to get the manager in now," Merson said on Sky Sports. "They need to sort this out now. This is no disrespect to Frank, but they have got to go 'right who do we want, who do we get.
"You go in now, there's four, five, six games to go, you can tinker, who's about to be their next season, who's not. He knows he's only there for the short time anyway. Frank knows he was their for a short time, he was there for the Champions League games."
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