FRANK LAMPARD is ‘in talks’ with Crystal Palace over becoming their new manager, according to reports.
The Eagles appear almost certain to be moving on from Roy Hodgson at the end of the season, with the 73-year-old’s contract set to expire.
And former Chelsea boss Lampard, 42, is at the top of Palace’s wishlist.
According to Fabrizio Romano, talks between the South Londoners and Lamps’ agent are ‘progressing’.
And should the former England star get the job, he could target Slavia Prague star Abdallah Sima as his first signing.
Lampard has been out of work since being axed by Chelsea in January.
But his record of working with young talent is likely to play well with Palace chiefs, with the club set for a huge rebuild this summer.
The Eagles currently have 15 players set to be out of contract, while Michy Batshuayi’s loan will expire.
They do, however, possess exciting youngsters Tyrick Mitchell, Ebere Eze and Nathan Ferguson for the next manager to develop.
Lampard played a pivotal role in handing opportunities to talented Chelsea stars including Mason Mount, Reece James, Tammy Abraham, Callum Hudson-Odoi, Billy Gilmour and to an extent Fikayo Tomori.
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Hodgson has refused to be drawn on his future, insisting before the recent win over Southampton that it’s ‘not the right time’ to discuss it.
He said: “When the time comes to speak openly about the subject I will.
“But today isn’t the day because we’re not on a great run of form and we’ve got an opportunity to take points on Sunday. I want full focus on that.”
As well as front-runner Lampard, Palace have also been linked with Swansea boss Steve Cooper – who also has a track record of developing young talent – as well as Barnsley gaffer Valerien Ismael.
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Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
