Frank Lampard is due to return to New York City FC in January, but Manuel Pellegrini suggested he could remain at Manchester City for the entire season.

NYCFC is the sister club of Manchester City.

“We will do what is best for the team and the player," said Pellegrini. "We must talk about a lot of things but it is not impossible for him to stay here. It is an issue that we will see further down the line. We will see what happens in January and we have two or three months to decide.”

Lampard scored the match-tying goal against Chelsea on Sunday and scored twice in their Capital One Cup match on Wednesday.

The MLS season starts in mid-March. 

“For me it is never difficult to put good players in the team," said Pellegrini. "The problem is when you don’t have [good players]. He is a very important player for our team and maybe, at 36, he cannot play three games in a row.”