Frank Lampard admits he feared he would have to leave Chelsea before signing his new one-year deal yesterday.

Yesterday, as he sat in the sun at Stamford Bridge, his new £120,000-a-week 12-month deal freshly signed, Lampard admitted it had been a bleak Christmas.

"It is no secret I always wanted to stay at Chelsea. It's my home," he said. "I've been here a long time and enjoyed the last couple of years more than anything. We won another trophy this week and I have the desire to win more.

"But there was a time around January when I thought I might have to move on. I'd been out for nearly two months injured.

"It was a funny time. The club were looking to move forward, I understood that. Leaving was certainly a consideration, though not in January. I was always going to see the season out."