Baku, April 6, AZERTAC

Chelsea have reached an agreement in principle to appoint Frank Lampard as their new head coach on an interim basis until the end of the season, according to The Athletic.

Ashley Cole, Joe Edwards and Chris Jones are set to join Lampard at the west London club as part of his backroom staff.

Lampard, who was at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday night as Chelsea drew 0-0 with Liverpool, is in line to return to his former club two years after leaving.

The 44-year-old has been out of work since being sacked by Everton in January. He previously managed Chelsea from July 2019 to January 2021, before being sacked and then replaced by Thomas Tuchel.

Cole, the former Chelsea and England defender, Edwards and Jones all worked with Lampard in his first spell at Chelsea, as well as at Everton.

An exhaustive search for a permanent successor to Graham Potter, who left Chelsea on Monday, continues in the weeks ahead.

The search for Chelsea’s new head coach is being led by the club’s co-sporting directors Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley, before a decision is ultimately made by co-owners Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali.

The Athletic reported on Tuesday that Brighton & Hove Albion’s Roberto De Zerbi is not in the running to be the next manager of Chelsea.

Luis Enrique and Julian Nagelsmann, fresh from being sacked by Bayern Munich, have both been linked to the Chelsea vacancy.

Bruno Saltor, who was previously a member of Potter’s coaching staff at Brighton & Hove Albion and then Chelsea, took charge of the west London side for the draw with Liverpool.

Chelsea are next in action at Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday.

They are 11th in the Premier League and face a Champions League quarter-final first leg against Real Madrid next week.