The agent for New York City FC midfielder Frank Lampard shot down reports Monday that the iconic English midfielder will extend his loan with EPL side Manchester City until next summer and miss the start of the 2015 Major League Soccer season.
Lampard’s agent told the New York Daily News on Monday that an extension to keep the 36-year-old midfielder abroad through the end of the season in May was “not even discussed,” meaning that Lampard is expected to be in NYCFC colors when the club makes its debut next year.
The Daily Express originally reported Monday that Lampard’s existing loan with Manchester City had been extended through the end of the current Premier League season. Lampard joined Manchester City – the EPL powerhouse which co-owns NYCFC along with the New York Yankees – on a six-month loan in August to stay sharp ahead of his MLS debut next spring. He signed as a Designated Player with NYFC in July.
Lampard has appeared in eight matches across all competitions this season for Manchester City and was named the team’s Player of the Month for September after scoring four goals in his first three games with the club.
He hasn’t played since suffering a thigh injury during a match against Tottenham on Oct. 18, however, and said this week he’s hoping to be fit for the team’s UEFA Champions League match against CSKA Moscow on Wednesday.
"I'm not far off selection," he told Manchester City’s club web site. "Fingers crossed, if all goes well over the next couple of days, I'll be back in contention. I had a small injury in my thigh – an old injury I'd disturbed slightly.
“It wasn't as bad as I'd first feared, but you have to be very careful with muscle injuries. That was the issue.”
Lampard also said he was aware of rumblings of a loan extension after such a hot start for the club.
"All I can say is how much I'm enjoying it at City," he told the club web site. "I'm contracted here until the end of December, and my future will be at New York City at some stage.
"All I can do now is go week by week and play as well as I can when I am playing to bring a good contribution.”
