John Barnes believes Frank Lampard has a ways to go before his Chelsea team can challenge for the Premier League title again.
The five-time English champions ended their first season under the legendary former Blues midfielder in fourth, out-performing pre-season expectations with a squad filled by academy graduates after losing talisman Eden Hazard in the summer.
Lampard has been proactive this summer, sealing Hakim Ziyech and Timo Werner for a combined £91m to refresh the Blues attack, but Barnes believes they will come unstuck again next season.
'I definitely feel like Chelsea can challenge for the top four again next season, but I don't necessarily think they can challenge Manchester City and Liverpool just yet,' the Reds legend told BonusCodeBets.
'However, they will become more competitive get closer to the top two teams in the Premier League with the signings they have made.
'Signing Ziyech, Werner and potentially more is clearly a strong indication that Chelsea are there to compete next season.
'I am sure they will be in the top four again, but I don't think they will be ready to make a move for first or second place in the league just yet.'
The Blues finished a huge 33 points behind Jurgen Klopp's side, with Pep Guardiola's City 15 clear of the west Londoners after 38 games.
Chelsea face a tough task to close the gap in one season, but are still chasing Leicester's Ben Chilwell and Bayer Leverkusen's Kai Havertz to add more firepower to their 2020-21 challenge.