Frank Lampard says Chelsea need to 'rebuild' just months after Todd Boehly splurged £600m on a squad full of new players

• Big money spent on new recruits
• Worked through three managers
• Still destined for bottom-half finish

WHAT HAPPENED? Following a takeover at Stamford Bridge by the Todd Boehly-led consortium that is now calling the shots in west London, big money has been invested in fresh faces – with a £106m ($131m) deal for World Cup-winning midfielder Enzo Fernandez smashing the British transfer record. Chelsea have, however, seen little return on that outlay – as they are destined to finish in the Premier League’s bottom-half this season – and interim boss Lampard concedes that more funds will be required in order to fix a broken outfit.

WHAT THEY SAID: The Blues legend told reporters on the back of another demoralising 4-1 defeat away at Manchester United: “It's a bad year for the club. The important thing is you get to the bottom of how it improves. It needs a rebuild, the club will move on in the summer in terms of the squad. Things need to improve to get to the level.”

THE BIGGER PICTURE: Lampard will not be around to oversee the reshaping of Chelsea’s squad this summer, with Mauricio Pochettino seemingly being lined up to inherit the managerial reins, and the ex-England international says there is little advice that he can offer to his successor. He added: “To come in without a pre-season and assess, it's probably not my time to give my opinions. It'll be someone else's decisions and a pre-season and start and look will be imperative.”

IN THREE PHOTOS:

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WHAT NEXT? Chelsea have one more game left to take in this season, a home date with Champions League-bound Newcastle on Sunday, with attention set to turn towards another recruitment drive once that contest comes to a close.