Soccer

Manchester City admit Frank Lampard never signed with New York City FC

Club says announcement claiming midfielder was on loan from American club was wrong

Frank Lampard of Manchester City never signed for New York City FC, it has emerged. Photograph: Alex Livesey/Getty Images
Frank Lampard of Manchester City never signed for New York City FC, it has emerged. Photograph: Alex Livesey/Getty Images
Jamie Jackson
Fri Jan 09 2015 - 19:45

Manchester City have admitted making mistakes regarding Frank Lampard’s status, with the club moving to clarify he never signed a two-year deal with New York City FC and so the midfielder was never on loan from the MLS franchise.

Instead, City say Lampard agreed “a head of terms commitment” with NYCFC that began on January 1st.

Lampard’s precise agreement with NYCFC, City’s sister club, has been unclear after it emerged last week the 36-year-old was never signed by City manager Manuel Pellegrini on a temporary basis, despite the champions stating this was the case on their website.

A clarification issued on Friday by the club said: “The statement on the NYCFC website in July saying Lampard’s two-year contract took effect from Aug 1st, 2014 was a mistake. (The) initial statement on City’s website that it was a loan was also an error.”

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The Premier League on Thursday indicated Lampard had signed a one-year contract at City and that a break clause was removed on New Year’s Eve to allow him to stay at the club, but City’s statement on Friday contradicted this.

“There was never a break clause in Lampard’s contract dated December 31st- (Ther was a) short-term contract with City (that) only ran to Dec 31st,” it said before clarifying his agreement with NYCFC. “There was a head of terms commitment from Lampard to join NYCFC from Jan 1st, 2015. That was extended to the end of this season. Any contract with NYCFC will now take effect from July 1st, 2015.”

The Premier League statement said: “Frank Lampard is registered as a Manchester City player until the end of the 2014-15 season. The Premier League has sought and received assurances from Manchester City that there is no agreement in place between the club or City Football Group with New York City FC relating to the player.”

Lampard’s arrival at City was a surprise given the statement he made on 27 July on “joining” NYCFC. “I didn’t want to play anywhere else in England because I had been so affiliated with one club,” he said. “So it made sense for me to move.”

Guardian Service