The commissioner of Major League Soccer, Don Garber, has said that Manchester City made an error of judgement over the handling of Frank Lampard, and that he had a feeling the 36-year-old would stay in England until May.
Lampard agreed to move to New York City FC, who are owned by the same company as Manchester City, in the summer and promptly joined Manuel Pellegrini's squad on an initial loan until January, so he could stay match fit ahead of the American season.
However, City have extended Lampard's loan until the end of the English season, which means that the former England international will miss the start of New York's campaign.
Garber told reporters: "If there was an error in judgement on this, it was not just announcing that he would come in July and figuring out how to manage the start of the season, no different than what happened with Robbie Keane or Thierry Henry or David Beckham.
"I sensed this was coming and it didn't surprise me when they ultimately made their decision."
Lampard has scored five goals in 15 appearances for Manchester City.
Charlie Bennett
