If Mustapha Carayol pops up with a late winner at Norwich on Sunday, Ipswich Town fans can expect a wild celebration.
The winger showed glimpses of his quality on his Blues debut in Saturday’s 0-0 draw with Burton, and is now hoping for a start in the East Anglian Derby as Ipswich bid to end their nine-year run without success over their greatest rivals.
The 29-year-old has made no secret of his desire to shoot whenever he has the chance and, if one flies in at Carrow Road, Carayol expects to be treading a fine line with referee David Coote as he celebrates.
“Sometimes they go in, sometimes they don’t but I’m just happy to get some minutes under my belt,” Carayol said.
“If I do that (score against Norwich) I will probably get sent off for my celebration.
“I’m looking forward to the game but the most important thing for me is putting in a performance.
“I don’t know, you’ll have to ask the gaffer,” he added when asked if he has done enough to earn a start.
“I might not play, so I’m just hoping we put in a good performance. But for me I’m enjoying it here, the boys have made me feel really welcome and I’ll be ready whenever the manager decides to call upon me.”
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Sunday’s game may be Carayol’s first experience of the East Anglian Derby, although he has played in similar games elsewhere during his career, but he is fully aware just how much it means to fans of both sides.
“It’s always on Sky so everybody knows a lot about it,” he said.
“The tempo is good, the atmosphere is unreal, so I’m really looking forward to it. We’re all going to prepare well, like any other game, and it’s a day for the fans so we are going to try our best and try to get the win.
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“I scored on my debut for Leeds against Rotherham, that’s kind of a derby, but for me they are just like any other game. The tempo is going to be high and everything so you just have to try and keep a cool head and play your game. You just have to try and keep a cool head and try to enjoy it.
“When you enjoy it you play your best football and, for me, I’m really looking forward to it, the atmosphere and finding out what it’s really like.
“It’s three points at the end of the day but you just want to put in a performance for the fans because it means so much to them. I’m hoping it’s going to be a good day for them and we get a good result and a good performance.”
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