Chelsea's first great splurge failed miserably. Will Lampard fare better?

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With the club spending big again in pursuit of success the transfer experiences of 90 years ago provide a salutary lesson

As Frank Lampard romps up and down the aisles of soccer’s summer supermarket with carefree abandon, tittering hysterically as he loads his trolley to a height that makes Sheikh Mansour look like Mike Ashley, excitement and anticipation builds among the Chelsea faithful. Off-the-shelf glory may be just around the corner!

Who can blame anyone for succumbing to their wildest dreams? Lampard’s binge will peal loud bells among Chelsea fans of a certain vintage. A 28-day burst of luxury transfer activity during the summer of 2004 brought Petr Cech, Arjen Robben, Didier Drogba, Ricardo Carvalho and Mateja Kezman to Stamford Bridge, and, well, four out of five ain’t bad. José Mourinho’s box-fresh team went on to win the Premier League in short order, a root-and-branch refresh paying instant dividends.

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from Football | The Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/football/2020/aug/26/chelsea-first-great-transfer-splurge-failed-miserably-will-lampard-fare-better

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