It's a tough blow for him personally since he'd regained his starting spot at Chelsea during their run to the Champions League title. England will also miss his leadership and experience in the middle of the field.
At 33, you have to wonder how many big European and international competitions that Lampard will have left in his cleats. Let's hope that he doesn't go out like this though. Liverpool's Jordan Henderson has been called in to replace Lampard but since I've never even heard of him, I'm going to assume that Lampard is a better player even at this stage.
The injuries are starting to pile up for the Three Lions as Gareth Barry is also out and Scott Parker is banged up so his status is uncertain.
England's new manager Roy Hodgson had this to say about Chelsea's captain: “It’s a huge blow for the team, especially coming after the loss of another senior player in Gareth Barry. The fact that the doctor cannot guarantee Frank could take part in any of the group matches means we have to replace him in the central midfield area.
"Apart from it being a huge blow to me and the team, I’m especially disappointed for Frank himself. He has been in very good form and was looking forward to the tournament. He made a huge contribution towards us qualifying for the Euros so it is cruel to be forced out through injury just before the tournament.”
England is in Group D which on paper doesn't look too treacherous. They play France, Sweden and host Ukraine. Finishing in the Top-2 in that group shouldn't be that hard since they look like the best team of the four but I'm confident that England will find a way to screw it up. That's what they always do.
UPDATE 6/3: Chelsea defender Gary Cahill broke his jaw yesterday in England's 1-0 friendly win over Belgium. He's been replaced by Liverpool's Martin Kelly.
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