Man City Mnanager Manuel Pellegrini has confirmed that Frank
Lampard of Chelsea will join Manchester City on loan from New York City FC
until January.
"From next week,
Wednesday, he will start working with our team and he will be with us until
January," Pellegrini told a press conference on Saturday.
"He is working with the squad. He will fight for his
position."
The 36-year-old signed for New York City last month on a
two-year contract after his release from Chelsea.
Major League Soccer franchise New York City are owned
jointly by Manchester City and baseball giants the New York Yankees, but their
season does not start until March 2015.
Manchester City plan to register the England international
for both their Premier League and Champions League campaigns.
"He knows we have a very good team, we have a lot of
players in his position. He is one player more," Pellegrini said following
his side's 5-4 defeat on penalties by Olympiakos in their latest pre-season
friendly.
"We have a lot
of games particularly with the Champions League - so he's very important for
our team."
Lampard has legendary status at Chelsea following 13 years
at Stamford Bridge, his 211 goals in 649 matches making him the club's record
scorer.
Former Chelsea winger Pat Nevin does not believe the
midfielder's reputation will be damaged by a move to City, and Pellegrini ruled
out any chance of sparing him a meeting against his former employers when the
two sides meet at Etihad Stadium on 21 September.
"He is a player for Manchester City and he will play
every game he needs to play," the Chilean said.
During his time at Stamford Bridge, Lampard was Chelsea's
vice-captain and won the Premier League title three times and the Champions
League and Europa League once apiece.
The former West Ham player also helped the Blues win four FA
Cups and the League Cup twice.
On signing for New York City FC, Lampard said: "New
York ticks all the right boxes for me. It's very exciting."
Former Spain striker David Villa, 32, has also joined the
MLS franchise but will spend three months on loan at Melbourne FC, Manchester
City's Australian partner club.
Manchester City chief
executive Ferran Soriano said: "One of the reasons David Villa and Frank
Lampard decided to come to New York is because they know who manages and who
owns the club."
Lampard, who won his 106th England cap during the World Cup
in Brazil, said he would make a decision on his international career once his
club future was finalised.
At his official New York unveiling, Lampard said: "I'm
going to keep fit, that's the main thing. How I do that is not clear yet.
"I'm going to sit round with people at the club and
sort that out."
A number of MLS players have previously spent the US
close-season on loan with Premier League clubs, including Clint Dempsey at
Fulham, Landon Donovan at Everton, Robbie Keane at Aston Villa and Thierry
Henry at Arsenal.
No comments:
Post a Comment