“I can tell you here now: He will go right to the top, right to the very top. Gordon Hayward Celtics Jersey . Hes got everything thats needed to be a top midfield player. His attitude is first class, hes got strength, he can play, he can pass it and he can score goals,” prophesized Harry Redknapp. Its fall 1996, a West Ham supporters summit and a clearly agitated Redknapp had just been taken to task for selecting then-18-year old Frank Lampard ahead of other more experienced players. Lampard had made his debut in West Hams starting XI away to Arsenal just a few months earlier. Substituted in a losing cause, Lampard would feature in only 13 matches during that 1996-97 campaign. It was a season in which he picked up more yellow cards than he scored goals. Redknapp knew full well even back then West Ham had unearthed a gem. So likely did his assistant coach and ex-teammate at West Ham, Frank Lampard Sr. Playing in an era of outrageously inflated transfer prices Chelsea manager Claudio Ranieri was astute back in the summer of 2001 to pay West Ham £11m [$20m CAD] to acquire Lampards services. "Hopefully I can test myself against the best players in Europe and we can contest for trophies,” Lampard was quoted as saying at the time. Three Premier League titles, four FA Cups, a Europa League and Champions League crown later, Lampard has decided his Chelsea playing days are now behind him and on his own terms. Although still under contract until June 30, the clubs all-time leading scorer (211 goals) made the announcement to coincide with Englands arrival into Miami. Lampard wants to be fully focused on what will be his third World Cup Finals. Amassing close to 600 appearances, only two players have ever appeared more times in a Chelsea shirt. over the course of his 13 seasons Lampard is without exception one of Chelseas greatest ever players. Not wanting to name him their best ever, the tribute on the clubs web site strongly implied Lampard was their best ever midfield player. It was Lampard who scored both goals in the game against Bolton in April 2005 which handed Chelsea their first title in exactly 50 years. Breaking the club scoring record which had stood for over four decades towards the very end of the 2012-13 season Lampards most important goal for the club occurred in the second leg of the 2008 Champions League semi-final in a game against arch-rivals Liverpool, which I was very privileged to attend. Lampard was not even expected to play that day. He had recently missed a pair of Premier League games to be at the bedside of his gravely ill mother, who sadly passed away a few days after the first leg. Play though he did, the Chelsea players wore black arm bands in memory of Lampards mother. The tie was very delicately poised after the first leg at Anfield had finished 1-1. Chelsea with the away goal were slight favourites going in, but Liverpool had got the better of Chelsea twice at this stage in 2005 and 2007. Didier Drogba opened the scoring, for Fernando Torres to level it just after the hour mark. Extra time loomed, it was a very highly charged Stamford Bridge. Less than 10 minutes into extra time after Michael Ballack was bought down in the area Chelsea were awarded a penalty. Up stood Frank Lampard. Hands on his hips, he stood at the edge of the box and waited for what must have seemed like an eternity as Liverpool goalkeeper Pepe Reina did his best to delay and distract. Lampard was having none of it. The ref blew the whistle, and with that trademarked run up to the ball he sent Reina the wrong way as he slotted the ball into the far right corner. Lampard took off for the opposite corner flag, and took with him the hearts of the 40,000 plus Chelsea supporters inside Stamford Bridge. As he got close to the corner flag he slowed down to remove his black arm band, then with his hands covering his face Lampard slumped to his knees. Joined by his teammates, there was no celebration when Lampard emerged with all emotion completely drained from his face. On running back to the halfway line Lampard looked up in the direction of where his dad and other members of his family were gathered. He waved and blew a kiss to them. The match finished 3-2 and Chelsea were off to their first Champions League Final. Away from the pitch Lampard is an all-too-rare breed when it comes to English footballers. Intelligent, staunchly working class, he attended a private high school where he was one of the more promising students. Not everyone aced Latin, Lampard did. In 2009 Chelsea conducted IQ tests on the playing squad. Although the club did not officially reveal the results it was reported Lampard scored over 150. That places him in Bill Gates territory. In March this year Lampard launched the BPLs annual childrens reading challenge held each season in conjunction with the National Literary Trust. Lampard disclosed his favorite book was a biography on U.S. President Abraham Lincoln... All 900 pages of it. Lampard the family man was also to surface shortly after 2009s highly published break-up with his fiancée, Elen Rives the mother of his two children. A London radio station talk show host openly criticized Lampard on the basis of a newspaper article which had quoted Rives. So incensed by the inaccuracy of the hosts comments Lampard called in live to the show and put the record straight in a conversation which lasted 10 minutes. I cant imagine there would be too many other BPL players who would take such initiative. Petra Cech referred to Lampard as one of the most influential players of all time in the Premier League. Make that on and off the pitch. Hell be dearly missed at Chelsea. When he met the press ahead of Englands World Cup tune-up on Wednesday he said he would return to Stamford Bridge to attend matches. Lampard lives within walking distance to the ground. Abramovich has offered to keep a job open for him. On June 20 Lampard will turn 36. Having already played Italy and Uruguay by then, Englands fate in the group stage may already have been decided. Lampard will walk away from the international arena at the conclusion of Englands World Cup. Chelsea, and Englands loss will be MLS gain. Noel Butler can be reached at: Noel.Butler@BellMedia.ca Twitter: @TheSoccerNoel TSN Radio is an official licensed radio broadcaster of the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil. Action gets underway Thursday, June 12 with Brazil vs. Croatia. Kick Off is at 4pm et /1pm pt. Marcus Smart Jersey .That sight softened the blow of what ended up as a 4-3 shootout loss to the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday night.Knowing their teammate was fine after a scary headfirst fall in the opening minute of the game helped calm the Maple Leafs. Walter Brown Celtics Jersey . -- So much for concern that running back Marshawn Lynch would be absent from the Seattle Seahawks minicamp. http://www.authenticcelticsproshop.com/Red-Auerbach-Jersey/ . Some teams got significantly better, some teams divested themselves of talent and some teams had quiet afternoons, keeping the status quo.SAN DIEGO -- Domonic Brown made the most of the only fastball he saw all night from Jason Marquis. Brown hit his 20th home run and tied a career high with four RBIs, and the Philadelphia Phillies beat the San Diego Padres 6-2 Tuesday night. "I was looking changeup," said Brown, "It was the only fastball I had seen from him in three at-bats. So I was just trying hit something in the middle the other way and I just reacted to the ball. "I just wanted to keep the swing short and quick and made that adjustment." Marquis (9-3), who had won eight straight decisions over his last 11 starts, went 4 1-3 innings, giving up six runs on six hits, walking five and striking out four to take the loss. "It was a fastball, up and out over the plate," Marquis said of the pitch Brown hit out. "Its 2-0 -- a hitters count -- and he put the barrel on the ball." He allowed back-to-back walks on eight pitches to Ryan Howard and Brown in the fifth inning, which led to Marquis exit from the game and contributed to three more runs by the Phillies, who took their 6-2 lead. Philadelphia parlayed singles by Jimmy Rollins and Chase Utley along with three walks, a wild pitch and a sacrifice fly by John Mayberry Jr. for the three runs. Marquis, who hadnt lost a game since April 22 against Milwaukee, leads the majors in walks with 53. He has had four or more walks in 11 of his 16 starts. The Padres have lost five of eight since a season-high seven-game win streak. Kyle Kendrick (7-4) went eight innings for Philadelphia, allowing two runs on seven hits with six strikeouts and no walks to pick up the victory. "Its always nice to pitch eight innings," said Kendrick. "That was a good win for us. I was throwing my cutter a lot more than usual tonight. That home run by Brown was big particularly after we gave up two and to come back and take the lead." Brown, who walked with the bases-loaded in the fifth to drive in a run, had hit a three-run homer off Marquis in the third for a 3-2 lead. Rollins walked to lead off the third and stole second. He went to third on a one-out single by Michael Young. Marquiss struck out Howard, but Brown hit a 2-0 pitch 411 feet into the right-centre field stands. John Havlicek Celtics Jersey. He is second in the NL in homers, one behind Carlos Gonzalez. It was his first homer since June 8, a span of 56 at-bats. He has 54 RBIs. The Padres had taken a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the second. Kyle Blanks singled to right and Yasmani Grandal doubled to left. Alexi Amaristas infield grounder to second scored Blanks, and Pedro Ciriacos single to left scored Grandal. The Padres threatened in the ninth on Grandals single and Ciriacos third hit of the game, a double. But reliever Antonio Bastardo struck out Logan Forsythe for the final out. NOTES: Padres LHP Robbie Erlin (1-0, 4.15 ERA) will be called up from Triple-A Tucson on Wednesday and will make his second major league start against Philadelphia. "We like we saw when he beat the Blue Jays. Hes getting to a point where hes about to break through," said Padres manager Bud Black. LHP Cole Hamels (2-11, 4.50 ERA) will pitch for the Phillies in the final game of the series. . Padres 2B Jedd Gyro, on the DL with a right groin strain, flew to San Antonio on Tuesday and will play with the Padres Double-A team Wednesday and Thursday. If all goes well, according to Black, Gyorko would be activated and would join the team Friday in Miami ..Padres 3B Chase Headley batted cleanup Tuesday for the second straight day. However, Black said he will likely not stay there even if he heats up. "We were hoping a different look would give him a different perspective on the game. I dont think it had anything to do with him getting two hits (on Monday).". Phillies 1B Ryan Howard returned to the starting lineup after sitting out Mondays game with a sore left knee. Howard was batting .432 over his last 12 games with three home runs and 11 RBIs. . Phillies RHP Carlos Zambrano is scheduled to make another start at Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Friday before the club makes a decision whether to call him up. Zambrano, who last pitched in the majors for the Miami Marlins in 2012, is 1-0 in three starts with Lehigh Valley with a 3.18 ERA, 17 strikeouts and nine walks in 16 innings. ' ' '