BEVERLY HILLS, May 19, (THEWILL) – After the legendary Manchester United pair of Eric Cantona and Roy Keane were inducted into the English Premier League Hall of Fame on Tuesday, it was the turn of Chelsea icon Frank Lampard on Wednesday, as he became latest former player to earn induction.
His induction includes him into the growing list of legends receiving the League’s highest individual honour. The former Chelsea player and manager joins Alan Shearer, Thierry Henry, Eric Cantona and Roy Keane in the hallowed pantheon of EPL football.
As a three-time Premier League champion, Lampard scored 177 goals during his 609 appearances for West Ham United, Chelsea and Manchester City, which remains the most goals by any midfielder in the competition’s history to underline his sheer giftedness.
Adored by fans, dreaded by defenders and respected by all, Lampard’s consistency and ability to find the best play to advance the team and control the centre made him one of the competition’s most complete midfielders, earning him the award of the Premier League Player of the Season for Chelsea’s 2004/05 campaign.
Even with some of the most talented goalscorers in the Stamford Bridge team, such as the clinical Ivorian Didier Drogba, Lampard still became Chelsea’s all-time leading goalscorer during his career and also surpassed a century of assists in the EPL.
In fact, though only four players have scored more Premier League goals than Lampard, The Chelsea midfielder still managed to beat them all by being the only player to score against 39 different opponents in the competition.
Long-range goals were Lampard’s signature strikes. It was never in doubt that he would go a season without recording a couple of these moments of embarrassments for opposing goalkeepers. With 41 long-range goals in all, Lampard still holds the EPL record for the most goals scored from outside the penalty area.
Together with Cantona and Keane from Thursday, Lampard is one of the six players of a 23-man shortlist to receive the most combined votes from the public and the Premier League panel.
Three further inductees will be announced over the next couple of days on the Premier League’s digital channels.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
