Chelsea tell Frank Lampard to sign or ask for a transfer

Frank Lampard was last night backed into a corner by Chelsea as he faced having to risk alienating Blues fans by demanding a transfer.

Inter Milan boss Jose Mourinho is ready to increase the pressure on the Stamford Bridge outfit to sell the England midfield ace by tabling an increased £9.1million bid for the 30-year-old.

But while Lampard has told close friends he simply cannot stay at the club after the way he feels he has been treated in recent days, Chelsea are refusing to buckle.

Blues chief executive Peter Kenyon put the ball firmly in Lampard's court last night as he told the midfielder he will not be allowed to go, even if that means him leaving for nothing next summer when his current contract runs out.

Kenyon said: "The situation is ongoing. We have always maintained that we want Frank to stay and an offer was made to that effect. That offer is still on the table.

"Frank is under contract and he still has one year to run on that.

"We'd like to hope we can reach an agreement but if we can't we have always worked on the basis that Frank sees out the terms of his contract."

A stunned Lampard blew his top when he heard new boss Luiz Felipe Scolari state he would be staying at the club, just hours after his demand for a five-year deal to see out his playing days at Chelsea was rejected by Kenyon.

While Lampard has no beef with Scolari, and trained under the Brazilian's watchful eye yesterday, he angrily confronted Kenyon, even as Inter were making their £8m bid on Tuesday afternoon.

Kenyon added: "Chelsea has made its position very clear to Internazionale and they have come back with a financial offer. That will be rejected.

"It is totally untrue Felipe was putting pressure on us to change the offer to Frank. At no stage was he ever in conflict with the club's position or asked the board or the owner to change the offer."

Kenyon's stance was reiterated by club chairman Bruce Buck, who added: "We would like Frank to stay with Chelsea for the long term and have offered him what we consider a very good new contract, which remains on the table.

"As is his right, he has decided not to accept this contract. He still has one year remaining on the contract and we expect, hope, he will honour that contract for the remaining year and even more."

The pair's stance comes with the club and Lampard at complete odds over the contents of the midfielder's training ground conversation with Scolari.

Chelsea insist they have made Lampard a four-year offer worth £140,000 per week and that the player not only wants a five-year deal, but a package worth £150,000 each week.

Lampard, in turn, feels utterly let down after seven years in which he has played 369 games and scored 110 goals and the midfielder has told friends and family that his life at Chelsea is over.

His decision was confirmed by the events of the past 48 hours but it emerged last night that Lampard was also swayed by the merits of moving to Milan by a man he grew up considering as a "Judas" - former England skipper and new Blackburn boss Paul Ince.

As a West Ham fan, the teenage Lampard was told Ince was a traitor for leaving Upton Park for Manchester United in 1992, only to realise the truth about England's first black captain when he was invited to join Terry Venables' squad at a training session ahead of Euro 96.

Lampard was thrilled when Ince, then at Inter, came up to him and Rio Ferdinand and made them feel like honoured guests, with the former England star instantly becoming a sounding board.

In recent weeks, Lampard has sought Ince's advice, with the latter telling him his own spell in Italy was the making of him as a player and suggesting the midfielder could benefit in the same way.

With the chance to again play for Mourinho and Ince's recommendation he should take the plunge, Lampard was already leaning in that direction before Chelsea turned down his wishes.

But the Blues' stance puts the onus on Lampard, who insists it would be wrong for him to stay under duress and then sign a precontract agreement with Inter on January 1, to make the next move.

One option, of exercising the right to buy out the final year of his contract, is effectively shut after Lampard chose not to give notice of his intent to go within 15 days of the end of last season.

It leaves Lampard the only realistic next step of going public with a transfer request, a move which could cause a serious rift with the Chelsea fans who have shared so many highs and lows with him since 2001.

What do you think Chelsea should do with Frank Lamaprd? Let us know over on our Football Spy blog .

What's on offer: 140K-a-week four year deal
Chelsea refuse to go further than their current offer for the 30-year-old - and Blues owner Roman Abramovich ruled out an improved offer on Tuesday.

As a result Lampard apparently feels it is "impossible" for him to remain at the club he has served for seven years.

However, he has so far refused to actually ask for a transfer.

And despite Chelsea claiming Lamps will see out the final year of his contract, his agent Steve Kutner said: "His position remains completely unresolved."

What he wants 150K-a-week five year deal
Jose Mourinho wants to be reunited with Lampard at Inter Milan - and the player has let it be known that after seven years at Chelsea he believes he is not being treated with the respect he deserves.

He has one year left on his Blues contract and could sign a pre-contract agreement with a European club on January 1, moving on a 'Bosman' free deal.

That will allow him to negotiate a huge salary, with his new club factoring in the fact they have not paid a transfer fee.