No contract talks with Lampard

Most football articles these days get in your face with provocative headlines in order to get a few clicks. So when I read this headline from Mirror, "End of an era: No talks with Chelsea over a new contract admits Frank Lampard," I had my doubts. Is the mainstream football media so starved of stories that they have resulted to speculation about Lampard's contract talks (again)? "Don't they have a Falcao transfer rumor to write about," I thought to myself.

But this piece, surprisingly, was not exaggerating (or making up) the facts. Lampard did talk, while in Japan, about the non-existent contract negotiations. And if he leaves this summer, it will be certainly be an end of an era. Here's what he said:

Talks about one-year extension, two-year extension don't exist - because at the minute nothing has been said and as far as I know nothing is planned. The ball is in Chelsea's court.

Well, that's pretty straight forward. Lampard went on to say that he can still play in the top level for another two or three years and that he doesn't like sitting on benches (Not even in the park or at the bus stops or wherever!). That's probably where the club and the legend don't see eye-to-eye. Chelsea probably don't think Lampard can go on for another two or three years, and definitely not as a player in the starting eleven week-in-week-out, which is not an unreasonable position for the club to take I guess.

He also sounds as if he is resigned to the fact that he won't be with the Blues beyond this summer:

I'm a Chelsea player as simple as that. I've had a great, great time here. But maybe things don't last forever. Although I want it to last forever you have to be big enough to know what it is.

*Tears*

But the true legend that he is, Lampard also went on to say this about fans booing Rafa Benitez:

Chelsea is the fans; You have to respect how they feel.

Can we keep him forever? Please?