Manuel Pellegrini on Thursday said the decision to keep New York City FC midfielder Frank Lampard at Manchester City for the remainder of the season is necessary to the club’stitle aspiration. Lampard, 36, came on as a substitute to head in the winning goal as City beat Sunderland, 3-2, at the Etihad Stadium on New Year’s Day. It was reported late Wednesday thatLampard had extended his deal with City, which is a part-owner of new MLS club NYCFC.
“Frank is very happy to stay here and we need him here,” said Pellegrini said after Thursday’s win,which put the reigning English Premier League champ level on points with Chelsea at the top of the league table. “For the fans in New York, to see Frank play is an amazing thing,” the Chilean said. “Ihope that he will be there next year. But I think that in this moment the best decision for him, for the club, for New York is to stay here with us…He is a very important player forus.
City, which trailed Chelsea by nine points on Nov. 1, has since taken 29 points from a possible 33.