Lampard (left) and Gerrard
Frank Lampard has emerged as the favourite to become Daniel Farke’s replacement at Norwich City after the German manager was sacked by the Canaries on Saturday.
The 45-year-old was relieved of his duties despite guiding Norwich to their first win of the Premier League season on Saturday via a 2-1 victory at fellow newly-promoted side Brentford.
The result still leaves Norwich at the foot of England’s top-flight on five points, level on points with Newcastle who are still without a victory this term following their 1-1 draw at Brighton. And the bookmakers have placed former Chelsea’s manager Lampard as the frontrunner for the Norwich job, with the Blues and England legend still unemployed after his Stamford Bridge sacking at the start of this year.
The 43-year-old was let go by Roman Abramovich in January with Chelsea ninth in the Premier League table but is now deemed to be the frontrunner for the Norwich at 11/2 after nearly a year away from the game. Meanwhile, Lampard’s former England team-mate Steven Gerrard, currently at Scottish Premier League champions Rangers, is second favourite at 6/1, with former Crystal Palace boss Roy Hodgson on the same odds.
Bournemouth boss Scott Parker is next favourite at 7/1 with former Dortmund manager Lucien Favre, who was in the running for jobs at Crystal Palace and Newcastle earlier this year, further back at 15/2.
Farke has left Carrow Road after four years in the role, which saw the German achieve two Premier League promotions with the Canaries but mustered just six top-flight wins in that time.
Paying tribute to Farke in a statement on Saturday night, Norwich sporting director Stuart Webber said: ‘In continuing to demand the very best for our club, this decision was not an easy one.
‘I know how determined Daniel and his staff were to succeed at this level but we feel now is the right time for a change to give ourselves the best opportunity of retaining our Premier League status.
‘All at Norwich City should be forever grateful to Daniel and his staff for the significant role they have played in our journey. They helped deliver two Championship titles, many memorable moments and they all fully bought into our philosophy and what it means to be part of this football club.
‘Daniel and his staff will always be welcome back here. I’d like to thank them all for their hard work and wish them well for the future.’
Rio Ferdinand, meanwhile, was adamant that Norwich made their decision to sack Farke before their match at Brentford, irrespective of how well the Canaries played in west London on Saturday.
When asked if Farke would have known about his impending departure before the game, Ferdinand added: ‘100 per cent. Listen – at the end of the day, you can’t sack a manager straight after a game (when) they’ve won the game.
‘They’re looking to do that, they’re looking to build the season from some positivity. They get it, they get their first win of the season, and they sack him? 100 per cent done before the game.’
