Frank Lampard named as the fifth player to enter the Premier League’s Hall of Fame
Frank Lampard has become the fifth player to be inducted into the Premier League‘s Hall of Fame.
Lampard helped Chelsea win their first-ever Premier League title under Jose Mourinho in 2005 and would go on to lift that same title two more times at Stamford Bridge.
A prolific goalscorer from midfield, Lampard is Chelsea’s all-time leading scorer and is fifth in the Premier League’s all-time chart. He scored 177 goals in 609 Premier League appearances for West Ham, Chelsea and Man City.
Frank Lampard is the fifth player to be inducted into the Premier League’s Hall of Fame
Lampard is Chelsea’s all-time leading scorer and has won three Premier League titles
Lampard also managed 102 assists in that same time, picking up four Premier League Player of the Month awards and the 2004-05 Premier League Player of the Season gong.
He is widely considered as one of Chelsea’s greatest ever players and has now been recognised for his contributions in the top flight of English football.
Lampard thanked his uncle, Harry Redknapp, for giving him his first big break in football before praising Claudio Ranieri and Mourinho – who he later fell out with as a manager – for their influence on him while he was at the Bridge.
‘There have been a lot of people that have influenced me,’ Lampard said. ‘I guess really Harry Redknapp’s belief in me at West Ham to give me the first opportunity, Claudio Ranieri for taking me to Chelsea, and Jose Mourinho for the influence he had on me when he first arrived. However, I took things from all my managers and am thankful to them all.’
Lampard celebrates his third, and final, Premier League title win with Chelsea in 2010
Lampard (centre right) thanked Jose Mourinho (centre left) for boosting his playing career
Lampard joins Alan Shearer, Thierry Henry, Roy Keane and Eric Cantona in the Hall of Fame.
The Blues legend claims he looked up to those already in the Hall of Fame and is ‘honoured’ to be mentioned in the same breath as them.
Lampard added: ‘As a young lad I remember just wanting to make it into the West Ham team, and looking up to players like Roy Keane, Alan Shearer and Thierry Henry so to be mentioned in the same bracket as them is a real honour. I am very proud and thankful for the recognition.’
Lampard credited his natural goalscoring ability to ‘practice and hard work’, with the midfielder renowned for his uncanny ability to consistently score from outside the box.
He revealed his favourite strikes of the 177 he scored in the Premier League were against Bolton when Chelsea wrapped up the title in 2005.
‘The key for me was practice and hard work,’ Lampard said, when asked about his secret to scoring so many goals from midfield.
Lampard also managed to reach 102 Premier League assists during his trophy-laden career
‘I had a talent for arriving and scoring goals. I had done it in all the teams that I played for but to score consistently over that period in the Premier League was mostly down to my hard work and dedication to constantly improve.
‘My favourite goals are the two goals I scored against Bolton when we won the league in 2005. They meant so much to me personally but more importantly it was what they meant to the club and the fans to win the League that year.’
Each inductee receives a personalised medallion, engraved with the year of their induction.
The former England international is one of the six players of a 23-man shortlist to receive the most combined votes from the Premier League panel and public to be inducted into Hall of Fame.