Will Frank Lampard sign a new Chelsea deal after all?

Did anyone see this coming?

Weren’t we all resigned to seeing longtime Chelsea man Frank Lampard finish his time at Stamford Bridge, this summer if not very soon, in January?

Just a week ago, we were all writing about Chelsea’s decision not to offer the England international a new deal.  Right move? Wrong move? That kind of thing.

The only place this story had to go, it seemed, was the “where.” As in, where would Lampard land?

We even got a look at odds coming out of England, tipping to the favorites for where the 34-year-old midfielder would take his career. (MLS wasn’t placed high in the odds, by the way, at 10-1.)

Now, it seems, there might be a new twist here. Did Lampard, for lack of a better way to put this, “embarrass” Chelsea into a re-think here with some bright and relevant  performances lately? Are Chelsea ready to open talks for another year or two?

Meanwhile, even Lampard admits that it’s been hard to remain focused through all this. Not that it shows; if the man truly is distracted, you can’t tell from his play on the field.