Everton boss Frank Lampard has confirmed he tried to sign Erling Haaland while he was manager of Chelsea.

Lampard spent 18 months in the Stamford Bridge hot-seat before being sacked in January 2021.

During his spell in charge of the Blues, Lampard’s Chelsea faced a RB Salzburg side who boasted prolific striker Haaland.

Haaland left RB Salzburg for Borussia Dortmund in 2020 before joining Manchester City in the summer.

“He’s an amazing player, that top level of play can come to whatever league, especially when he possesses everything he does,” Lampard said of Haaland.

“I’ve got huge respect for him. I’ve coached against him when he was at RB Salzburg, my eyes were wide open at the time. It was clear in our pre-match preparation what this boy was already.

“I tried to sign him at Chelsea, it wasn’t to be. And it was clear what he was going to become, so fair play to him.”