Frank Lampard: �I would have stayed at Chelsea”

Chelsea legend Frank Lampard insists he would still be at Chelsea had a contract extension been put to him at Stamford Bridge.

Lampard’s glorious 13-year stint came to an end over the summer which allowed him to walk away as a free agent.

The former England midfielder subsequently agreed to join the MLS side New York City FC, with a loan deal then bringing him back to the Premier League with champions Manchester City.

Lampard told The Sun: �I would have obviously stayed if Chelsea had offered me another year. There was no reason for me to leave.”

“Yes, I wanted to play a bit more regularly but I’m not stupid.”

“If Chelsea had given me a new contract it would have been mad not to take it at the time.”

“It wasn’t that I didn’t think I could still do it. If I felt like that I wouldn’t have gone to City on loan.”

“I had a chat with Jose Mourinho and both he and the club were always great with me. The decision was made – and I don’t know who made it.”

He added: “When we won the Champions League I knew there would be some sort of evolution. Chelsea wanted to bring in some younger players and it was the right move for the club.”

“We had a fantastic spine of players who helped carry us through from one manager to another and win things, but it doesn’t last forever.

“Jose was brilliant about it. I didn’t walk out with any bad feelings towards him or the club.”

“I knew things were coming to a head but I’m realistic and, in football, I move on quite quickly.”

“I also felt like I didn’t want to be a player who faded away – with that being the last memory people had of me.”

“So maybe it was the right time. Maybe it was right that the club took it out of my hands.”

“I certainly didn’t want to go until I was 40 and just being rolled out for the Capital One Cup after the great times I had at the club.”

“What I really want now is to make a really positive impact in my time at Manchester City and then again in the next stage of my career.”

Frank Lampard left Chelsea as their all time top scorer with 211 goals and the highest scoring midfielder in the Premier League history with 171 goals. He insists he has no complaints at being allowed to leave with his head held high and with 11 major honours to reflect on.