Frank Lampard’s appointment as Chelsea manager has the potential to be a match made in footballing heaven. The Blues’ all-time leading goalscorer hops into the managerial hot seat after Maurizio Sarri moved back to his native Italy to join Juventus.
Lampard leaves behind a Derby squad hungry to avenge last season’s playoff final defeat to Aston Villa. A signing of his with next to no time spent together is former Aberdeen and Inverness star Graeme Shinnie.
Few other clubs would’ve tempted Lampard or Shinnie
It seems to be one of those generic appointments when you’re years and years into an old Football Manager save. Frank Lampard admits it was a “tough decision” to take the Chelsea job with just a season’s managerial experience.
(Photo by Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images)
Another tough decision to make would’ve been Graeme Shinnie turning his back on the Dons to join Derby County. The boyhood Aberdeen fan became a Ram after signing a pre-contract back in May.
Lampard’s lure
However, when Shinnie would’ve seen Lampard occupying the Derby dugout, and the possibility of the club becoming a Premier League outfit, it would’ve seemed a no-brainer.
The former Aberdeen anchor has ultimately made the right decision but he must be gutted that Lampard has left for London.
Shinnie departed the Dons for Derby. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)
Lampard’s a former midfield maestro and would’ve been the perfect tutor for his signing. Shinnie does all the dirty work and is a total workhorse sitting in front of a back four.
Should he add goals into his game, he’d be absolutely unplayable. And who better to learn from than Chelsea’s all-time leading goalscorer? Sadly now, he won’t get the opportunity to.
But Derby are a big club in England’s second tier, seemingly always on the cusp of promotion. If the Rams get their next appointment right, it might not be long before we have seen Graeme Shinnie in both the Scottish Premiership and the English Premier League.