Frank Lampard: ‘i Want To Prove Everybody Wrong All The Time – It’s A Good Driving Force’

“I’ve sewage a spot of a fat ankle, you tin astir apt spot nan swelling,” Frank Lampard says, legs crossed, looking towards his correct foot. At first glimpse it could beryllium mistaken arsenic grounds of his hands-on attack astatine Coventry City training, collateral harm from partaking successful those snappy rondos. The reality is simply a world distant from frontline coaching. “I twisted it playing pinch nan kids successful Hyde Park connected a Sunday,” he says, breaking into a wide smile.

It is Lampard down to a T. As a youngster he was ticked disconnected by his precocious mother, Patricia, for wearing shot boots to furniture and erstwhile spent a play successful Bournemouth astatine his uncle Harry Redknapp’s location breaking successful a brace of moulds. Lampard has ever been immersed successful nan game, from joining Heath Park boys’ nine and fulfilling his dream of pulling connected a West Ham garment to cementing his spot arsenic 1 of England’s top midfielders crossed 13 years and countless trophies astatine Chelsea. Those days person gone – Coventry represents his 4th nine arsenic a head – but nan 47-year-old still believes successful being successful nan heavy of things.

“The group I aspired to beryllium erstwhile I started to do this and went to watch different managers, nan champion ones were correct successful nan mediate of nan training pitch, trying to get their connection crossed location and then,” he says. “I went to watch Pep [Guardiola] for a fewer days because of my Man City connections, Eddie Howe, Thomas Frank. For me, nan bully ones, generally, are successful nan mediate of everything. I deliberation that’s nan champion measurement truthful I americium progressive for illustration that and I bask being that way. That’s really I’d want to beryllium coached successful this modern day. It’s bully to interact pinch nan players.”

Lampard is engaging company, rubbing connected everything from Coventry’s pace-setting commencement arsenic Championship leaders to nan improvement of Thomas Tuchel’s England and moreover Midsomer Murders. He is talking successful a hospitality container overlooking nan CBS Arena pitch, caller from gathering participants from a dementia programme tally by nan club’s kindness arm. It is 1 of nan organization projects crossed nan English Football League’s 72 clubs that collectively prosecute pinch much than 1 cardinal group a twelvemonth and among those showcased crossed nan day astatine nan crushed to observe nan EFL’s yearly week of action. Coventry’s inaugural resonates pinch Lampard whose grandmother, Hilda, was diagnosed pinch nan neurodegenerative illness erstwhile he was a teenager.

“As these things are, it was very quick. I would spot tons of Nanny Hilda and she would ever person nan beverage made, nan cakes and sandwiches ready. She lived successful eastbound London, not acold from Upton Park, and erstwhile you’re that spot younger, you don’t recognise each nan signs, but it started pinch immoderate representation nonaccomplishment and it became overmuch much severe. It was rather scary arsenic a family to woody with. But many, galore families are coping pinch it and we person to thief arsenic overmuch arsenic we can. The affirmative faces I saw a infinitesimal agone show really overmuch we tin do to support.”

Coventry are nan highest scorers successful nan apical 4 tiers of English football; remarkably, their tally of 39 goals, courtesy of 10 scorers, has exceeded their full for nan 2016-17 season, erstwhile nan nine were relegated to League Two, and is astatine slightest double nan number mustered by each but 4 of their section rivals. After a mates of near-misses, location is renewed optimism astir returning to nan Premier League for nan first clip since relegation successful 2001. After Tuesday’s triumph against Sheffield United, Coventry person much points aft 14 matches than 4 of nan six automatically promoted teams had astatine nan aforesaid shape successful nan past 3 seasons, including Leeds and Burnley past season.

Frank Lampard puts an limb astir Haji Wright, 1 of Coventry’s 10 goalscorers this season. Photograph: Nick Potts/PA

This Saturday brings a travel to second-placed Stoke City, managed by Mark Robins, Lampard’s predecessor who dragged nan nine from League Two to wrong rubbing region of nan Premier League. It is simply a quirky timing; Friday marks a twelvemonth since Robins was sacked pinch nan nine 17th, extracurricular nan relegation area connected extremity difference. This period marks Lampard’s first day successful complaint and he, too, went adjacent to guiding Coventry to nan apical formation past season, losing to Sunderland successful nan playoff semi-finals. On his first time he gathered nan unit into nan gym, including chefs and cleaners, and told nan players they were amended than nan array suggested. Lampard has regalvanised nan place.

What is nan astir discernible quality betwixt nan squad now and nan 1 he inherited? “Well, nan squad now starts to consciousness for illustration a squad that I want my squad to look for illustration … that’s perfectly nary disrespect to what went connected earlier because nan [previous] head had nan astir unthinkable success. But erstwhile I came successful you could consciousness nan assurance was down, erstwhile you looked astatine nan squad I don’t deliberation location was a clear personality and that tin hap without confidence. I’ve mislaid my occupation arsenic well, truthful I understand what tin happen. My occupation was to go: ‘Where tin we get better?’ We person tried to create a squad pinch existent velocity and energy. We want to beryllium a very affirmative squad successful really we triumph nan shot backmost and attack. At nan infinitesimal I spot a batch of things I for illustration and hopefully nan fans are enjoying it.”

At his unveiling Lampard was peppered pinch questions astir why he wants to activity successful specified a volatile industry, alternatively than beryllium a pundit aliases practise his play swing. “I return flimsy offence to that statement of questioning – ‘why do you do this?’ – because I’m presuming money’s involved. I americium rather driven truthful I do want to beryllium everybody incorrect each nan time, I deliberation it’s a bully driving force. I effort not to trust connected it because if you do you’ll beryllium nan champion head 1 week, nan worst head nan adjacent week. That’s beautiful overmuch nan story.”

Lampard grins. He has felt scrutiny passim his career, from that infamous infinitesimal erstwhile Redknapp defended selecting his nephew astatine a West Ham fans’ forum successful 1996. Lampard won 106 caps, representing England astatine 4 awesome tournaments, including 3 World Cups, erstwhile nan communicative was often that thing but triumph was failure. “‘The aureate procreation should perfectly person won a tournament’ … well, no, we had to spell against Spain, France and Germany and it wasn’t easy. And it won’t beryllium adjacent summer. At nan aforesaid clip I tin ideate nan activity is very good, we person sewage bully talent successful nan squad; it’s breathtaking and I dream they do very well.” Has he tired of nan talk of the alleged aureate generation? “Yeah, a small bit. It’s aged news and group sensationalise it. I look backmost very fondly connected my England profession but we didn’t triumph and that’s a fact.”

So, what has Lampard made of England nether Tuchel, who has been happy to time off retired large names? “You tin spot nan guidance he wants to return them, wherever location is simply a existent togetherness astir nan team, nan style, and I deliberation it’s been positive. My procreation gets spoken astir a batch but it was a different time, era and group. With my group astatine Coventry, nan astir important point for america is that we’re each together and nan players professionally get connected good and they cognize nan guidance we’re going and they each respect each other.”

Frank Lampard astatine nan Changing Lives Together arena astatine nan CBS Arena, a dementia inaugural tally by Coventry City. Photograph: Ryan Browne/Shutterstock

Balance emerges arsenic a theme. He commutes from nan family location successful London and Redknapp is usually first to telephone aft matches, catching Lampard connected nan M40. Other times he turns to euphony aliases podcasts to wile distant nan journey. He added The Enemy – nan Coventry set who earlier Tuesday’s triumph performed We’ll Live and Die successful These Towns, a opus adopted arsenic nan club’s pre-match anthem – to his playlist and successful nan summertime saw Oasis 3 times astatine Wembley. “I retrieve their [first] albums coming out, I was 17, 18, and I was very fresh for that astatine nan time,” he says, smiling. “It was a saccharine spot for my era.”

Does he thin to stray clear from athletics erstwhile it comes to podcasts? “I listened to Steven Bartlett pinch Jürgen Klopp nan different time and that was very interesting. But, yeah, mostly I for illustration to spell distant from it. I for illustration authorities aliases crime. Murder mysteries. I perceive to Dateline. I’ve sewage that benignant of weird fascination pinch these things: really do these things get solved?”

Overworking tin beryllium glamorised and Lampard confesses he is simply a “workaholic” but recognises nan worth of clip pinch his seven-year-old daughter, Patricia, and four-year-old son, Freddie. “It conscionable gives maine a spot of a softener,” he says. “I person 4 children: my eldest daughters are astatine university, 1 successful Scotland, 1 successful London, and my younger ones support maine busy, truthful I bask being astatine location pinch them and my wife. That’s what I emotion doing. If I get a time off, I’m very, very happy to beryllium doing nan basics of life, that’s nan cleanable switch-off.”