"EXCITING Things For Me!" Frank Lampard REVEALS Why He Joined Coventry City!

What was it about Coventry City that tipped you back into the world of football management? Many things, I think the size of the football club. Growing up, I made my debut against Coventry West Ham many years ago. An understanding of the size of the club that's been in the Premier League and wants to get back there. The conversations I had with the club and the ambitions that they have. A view on the squad and seeing the squad and hoping that I can improve it and improve the position we're in at the moment. It's a pretty young squad, which we haven't got previous of having done. We've probably hit Derby and Chelsea, predominantly my first time there. Exciting things for me. During your time away from the game, was there ever a moment where you thought, maybe I'll get a less stressful job than being a football manager? Did that ever cross your mind or was this always the plan? It was always the plan. I wanted to work again. You get asked the question a lot when you're not working. In the moment of not working, you have to wait for opportunities. You just have to use that time well. Not really. I was trying to enjoy the moment of not working. Because when you're in the job, it consumes you instantly. But no, this is what I love to do. I enjoy working with players. I want to make the players better. I want to make the team better. I've enjoyed all my experiences, whether they're good or bad. I've had a lot of good experiences in management as well. You've got to be brave enough to take on in this job and understand what comes with it. Your passion for management shines through. Would you say that you're just as ambitious to be a success as a manager as you were as a player? Is it different? I think it's probably different in terms of what you can affect as a player. There are different skill sets you can affect as a manager. A lot of things are your responsibility. Your hands as a player, you have a lot of personal responsibility. As a manager, you have a personal responsibility in the context of the job that you're in. What's seen as success can be relative. Staying in the Premier League or getting to a final, etc. But I love that side of it. It's more the competitive nature for me that remains the same as it was as a player. Big boots to fill. Did the prospect of following Mark Robbins make you think twice about applying? Does it add any more pressure? I don't know. What I have got is a lot of respect for him and the job he did. I actually crossed paths with Mark a bit when I was managing the Derby. He was always very polite, always very respectful. A really good football man who did a great job here. So I'm not sitting here to try and play myself up against him and tell him I'm going to do these great things. I think he's probably a good son of a good manager. He's a manager that's left good roots for you to try and continue in your own way. So I'm very thankful for the work he's done here. I've got complete respect. I need to earn my respect through the work that I do. Simple as that. I'm quite humble about that. I'm not coming here as some kind of unveiling. This is shouting from the rooftops what I want to do and get to work. Absolutely. You haven't picked your first start in your life. Some of the fan base have been sceptical about the appointment. What would you say to those that are saying that they're not sure how good you are as a manager? Listen, they're entitled to their opinions. I've got no worries about that. I think in the modern day, if you become a manager, you can't be too prickly. You can't probably listen to a lot of that. Thanks for telling me. But it's a serious fact that in this job you are held up to high account even before you start the job. That's the reality of it. I've got no problem with that. I've been used to that as a player for many years and as a manager. I have confidence in myself. I want to show how well I can do the job. I've also had a lot of support and found out that there's a lot of Coventry fans where I didn't even know. In the last two or three weeks, down in London, walking down the King's Road, in certain areas. It was another realisation of the history of this club and the strength of its fan base. They can't all love me. They probably never all will love me. But I'll do my best to bring them the team they want. And then maybe they'll like me. I'm sure it'll work out fine. You had a good time at Derby. What did you learn there? What did you love about the championship? The competitive nature of it. The relentless nature of it. I like that. When you're in it, it can challenge you and test you because of it. When the games come thick and fast. But I learnt a lot because it was my first job. And I learnt a lot because I was trying to help young players in their coaching. But I also fell into some really good experiences as they were really helpful. So it was a really good experience for me. You're loaded with a lot of different experiences as a manager. You've been in the relegation battles. You've been at the top end of the trend. You've been in the Champions League. You've been in the championship. I'm sure you're a better manager now than you were at Derby. I need to show that. And that's what it is. I believe so, yes. Because of the experiences I've gone through. I also think being a young, fresh manager is a good thing. Because you've got a lot of energy. But then when you get a bit older, you realise there are ways to spend your energy in the right ways. To delegate your own time. So I've definitely learnt those things. And I've worked at, as you say, different spectrums. Different scales in the Champions League. In relegation battles. I think all those things, they have to make you better. Because they're all experiences. Last one for me. 18 months is around the longest you've had in charge of the club so far. Mark Robbins was obviously here for seven and a half years. Is there a part of you that would love to make this your home and stay here for the long term? I'd love to. Because if you're asking me now, it would mean I'm bringing success. And that's all I want to do. So, you know, 18 months. I don't know. Is that around the average manager's lifetime? I might even be a bit better than that. I don't know. It's probably shorter than that now. But in terms of this job in front of me, I'll go step by step. I'm not looking too far ahead. I want to affect the team. I want to be proud of the team. I want it to be a team that the fans are proud of. And that makes me proud. So if I can do that, and hopefully for a long time, I'll be very happy. Good luck. Thank you.