A season of moans and groans, outrage and abuse, looks set to end happily for Chelsea — regardless of the result in Amsterdam tonight.
Of course it would be splendid to win the Europa League. Completing a hat-trick of European competitions would help to create that elusive sense of “history” to which Liverpool fans allude.
A year after the incredible triumph in Munich, it might seem a slight anti-climax. But it would look good in the books forever.
The main reasons to be cheerful, however, lie in the background. First is confirmation that Frank Lampard will sign a one-year contract after, in all likelihood, captaining the side against Benfica.
There may be no Sir Alex Ferguson in the Old Trafford dugout next season, or Paul Scholes on the pitch, but there will be a Lampard at the Bridge — and that’s living, breathing and thriving history. Lampard has confounded neutrals such as myself who believed Chelsea would have to rebuild without him.
He has made his point, most recently by shooting the club back into the Champions League with a record-breaking double at Villa Park. That his first act afterwards was to phone Bobby Tambling (whose goalscoring record he broke) merely emphasised the man’s quality.
The board were not wholly to blame for the delay in signing; the blot on their copybook this season concerned Mark Clattenburg.
Otherwise Roman Abramovich and company have performed well.
The “interim” engagement of Rafa Benitez was not ideal but honest — and that virtue has brought its reward.
Benitez will hand over a team with a future. The Spaniard is expected, moreover, to hand it to a man loved by the support almost as much as Lampard.
With Jose Mourinho back in charge, they’ll have their cake come August. A trophy would be the proverbial icing.
