He pipped fellow England teammates John Terry and Jamie Carragher to become the first home-grown player to win the award since Teddy Sheringham in 2001.

And FWA chairman Gerry Cox says the fact that three members of Sven-Goran Eriksson's squad were in the running for the award is great news for the Head Coach's World Cup plans.

He told TheFA.com: "It is terrific for Chelsea that he is playing so well for them in their centenary and Championship-winning year, along with John Terry and Joe Cole.

"And it is great news for Sven and England as well that the top three candidates for footballer of the year are all home-grown. It has to bode well for England's World Cup campaign.

"Frank Lampard epitomises what is a very exciting time for Chelsea and England. He has established himself in the heart of the England team doing what he does best for Chelsea."

Lampard has capped a fantastic season for Chelsea, helping them win their first league title since 1955, along with scoring crucial goals on their way to the semi finals of the Champions League.

And Cox added Lampard would fit into any team in the world, and fully deserves the accolade.

He said: "The fact he has scored 18 goals for his club, becoming their top scorer, illustrates that any team in the world would want him in their side.

"He has only missed one Premiership game in four years at Chelsea and he is currently on a record run of 143 games in succession.

"John Terry won the PFA award last month and the two of them were pretty close until a couple of weeks ago, when Frank pulled away to win by a substantial margin."

Carragher's superb performances for Liverpool in the Champions League, where he helped his side beat Chelsea to book a place in the final, led him to secure third place ahead of Thierry Henry, to make it one-two-three for the Three Lions.