Remember the day Paul Lambert 'lost it' at Carrow Road?
Paul Lambert is sent to the stands by referee Peter Bankes - Credit: Paul Chesterton/Focus Images Ltd
Two years ago today Paul Lambert had a traumatic return to Carrow Road as manager of Ipswich Town - Chris Lakey looks at the events of Sunday, February 10, 2019
A snarl, a police officer’s intervention and a cheeky wink from the other side of the Carrow Road tunnel... it was a day when Paul Lambert exploded back on the scene at the club where he achieved his greatest managerial success.
And it wasn’t pretty.
Lambert had been back to Carrow Road before, but the love for the man who led City to successive promotions and back into the Premier League after succeeding Bryan Gunn in August, 2009, was slowly wearing thin.
When he exploded on the touchline it went altogether.
Norwich City goalkeeper coach Ed Wootten was in the thick of the melee as the Canaries fumed at a bad tackle on Max Aarons by Ipswich Town midfielder Jon Nolan - Credit: Paul Chesterton/Focus Images Ltd
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His mood perhaps wasn’t helped by the league table: City’s 3-0 win sent them back to the top of the Championship. Town were rock bottom, cut adrift. City were heading for the Premier League, Town were heading for League One.
The blue touch paper was lit in first-half stoppage time by Jon Nolan’s late challenge on Max Aarons.
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A steward, a policeman and a Sky Sports reporter tried to restrain Lambert after he squared up to City’s assistant head coach Edmund Riemer. Lambert was sent off by referee Peter Bankes, as was City's head of performance Chris Domogalla.
Paul Lambert in full flow during an ugly scuffle just before half-time - Credit: Paul Chesterton/Focus Images Ltd
In the melee a TV camera caught City boss Farke give a sly wink as he watched the drama unfold, refusing to become involved in someone else's argument.
Lambert had no argument with his red card, saying: "I'm not going to stand there and watch players run 30 yards to get people booked.
"And I'm certainly not going to let somebody come into our technical area - and I don't even know who it was - and provoke us, that's for sure.
Paul Lambert takes his seat in the directors' box at the start of the second half - Credit: Paul Chesterton/Focus Images Ltd
"I stood my ground - do I regret it? No I don't.
"This club was in League One when I was here. Short memories."
Farke was Mr Cool.
"I have a lot of time for Paul Lambert and 95pc of the Ipswich staff are fine but there are one or two guys - you can lose a game, but show a little bit of class, quality and style.
"I was a bit annoyed to be honest with how they handled it. Respect human beings and the words you choose, because there are children around and there are more important things in life than football.
Bad day at the former office for Paul Lambert - Credit: Paul Chesterton/Focus Images Ltd
"Some of their staff who were not so much in the spotlight - my feeling was they wanted to use today in order to prove something and I think you'd better not do this when you're in this position in the league."
That lit another fuse under Lambert.
“I don't think he should be commenting on my staff. I certainly won't have him talking about my staff. He should look at his own staff first before he comments on anyone else's.
"The referee sent off the wrong guy for them. It wasn't that guy that I was arguing with."
Two years on and City and Farke are again fighting to get out of the Championship … Town and Lambert are just desperate to climb back into it.
