Chelsea reportedly have no intention of relieving Frank Lampard from his duties before the end of the season.
The 44-year-old was re-hired on an interim basis to replace the outgoing Graham Potter, having initially served as head coach between July 2019 and January 2021.
Despite his status as a club legend, Lampard's return has not galvanised the Chelsea squad, and he has lost each of his three games as caretaker manager so far.
Lampard's homecoming was ruined in an opening 1-0 loss to Wolverhampton Wanderers, before the Blues went down 2-0 to Real Madrid in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final.
The Englishman's first game back on the Stamford Bridge touchline ended in a 2-1 defeat to Brighton & Hove Albion, leaving the bottom-half Blues entrenched in 11th place with just seven games to go.
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Lampard's side find themselves 17 points adrift of the top four and 10 worse off than seventh-placed Brighton - who have two games in hand - and they host Real in the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final on Tuesday night.
While the 44-year-old's return is yet to have the desired impact, Sky Sports News claims that the Blues board have no plans to terminate his contract early as they continue to search for a permanent successor.
Former RB Leipzig and Bayern Munich head coach Julian Nagelsmann is believed to be Chelsea's number one candidate, and the 35-year-old is understood to have met with directors Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley face to face.
Nagelsmann is not expected to make a decision on his future before the summer, though, as Tottenham Hotspur are also vying for his services as they search for Antonio Conte's successor.
Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain are also attentive to Nagelsmann's situation amid uncertainty over the futures of Carlo Ancelotti and Christophe Galtier, the former of whom was briefly tipped to return to Chelsea before ruling out a reunion.
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Nagelsmann is just one of several candidates under consideration for the Chelsea role, with former Spain and Barcelona head coach Luis Enrique also earmarked as a leading contender.
As is the case with Nagelsmann, though, Chelsea will face competition from Spurs to land Enrique, as the Lilywhites are reportedly seeking imminent talks with the 52-year-old.
Chelsea may already have an edge over their capital counterparts, though, as Enrique is said to have been left disappointed when Lampard returned to Chelsea, having been willing to take the reins right away.
Ex-Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino and Sporting Lisbon manager Ruben Amorim have also been mentioned as possible targets for Chelsea, who reached the final of the 2019-20 FA Cup during Lampard's first spell in charge.
The former Blues midfielder took a year out after his Chelsea sacking before being hired by Everton in January 2022, saving the Toffees from relegation before being let go after just 12 months in the job.
Ben Knapton
