INTER SIGN LAMPARD BEFORE EUROPEAN FINAL

Current Inter boss Roberto Mancini is now favourite to succeed Grant as the new Chelsea manager, in what would be a sensational series of events over the next few weeks. The Lampard negotiations took place directly between Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich and Inter president Massimo Moratti during the last seven days.

Abramovich has decided to cash in on Lampard, who has only one year of his contract to run and has been refusing to sign a new deal.

Abramovich does have Mancini high on his list of targets as a new manager but the Italian, who won his third successive Serie A title on Sunday, still has three years remaining on his deal, at about £5m a year.

Grant is set to be offered the opportunity to switch back to the role of director of football he had when he first came to the club last year.

Lampard, 29, has refused to sign the £125,000-a-week contract Chelsea have presented him with this season and it looked as though he was certain to quit the club this summer.

After the death of his mother Pat last month, though, he had a change of heart and seemed set to stay.

But during the last few weeks, while Lampard and his family have grieved, the player has once again come round to the idea that he has one last big move in his career at his age – and still wants to play abroad.

A source close to Lampard told the Daily Express last night: “Before the death of his mum, Frank looked certain to go. But then things changed. He was thinking seriously of staying but it has never gone completely from his mind that he only has one big move left in his career – and he has always wanted to go abroad.

“Also, he was not happy with the deal that Chelsea had offered him.”

Lampard remains in contact with Mourinho, speaking to him every week. The Portuguese has been in extensive talks with Moratti in the last few weeks and an agreement between the two is now close to being reached.

And one of Mourinho’s demands to any of the clubs which have been interested in him was that Lampard was one of the first players he would be able to buy.

Lampard has played 247 Premier League games for Chelsea since his £11m move from West Ham in June 2001, scoring 71 goals.

He has been a linchpin for the club ever since and, under Mourinho, was a key part of the team who won back-to-back league titles.