Paul Lambert believes Ipswich Town are ‘in a lot better place’ than when he took over two years ago.
The Scot was appointed at the end of October 2018, with Town deep in relegation trouble following Paul Hurst’s brief reign, but was unable to keep the club in the Championship before overseeing a hugely disappointing 11th-placed finish in League One during his first full season.
Off the pitch Lambert, whose side are currently second in the third tier but out of all three cups, used his early months in charge to foster a renewed relationship between the club and supporters, while also pushing owner Marcus Evans to invest in the training ground and fund improvements at Portman Road.
MORE: Stuart Watson - Dear Lambert and co, here’s why we all need a bit more convincingWhile he is aware their current League One status is not what anyone associated with the club expects, Lambert believes the club is building a strong future for itself.
“I think the club’s in a lot better place than it was when we came into it, that’s for sure,” the Town boss said, when asked he how saw things now he’s been in charge for more than two years.
“I think the football we’re playing is really good and if the club sticks to that philosophy going forward then it’ll be in a really healthy place. You can’t judge everything by short-term markers because it will take a number of years to get things how we want it.
“We can’t buy players and we need to nurture what we have and look at free transfers. It’s not ideal and of course we want to be in a higher league, but the football we’re playing is good.
“We didn’t want to get relegated, even if we came in at a difficult time with everything up in the air. The club had lost a lot of very good players and was building a new team that needed time to gel and adjust to the size of the club.
“I’m happy with how it’s going.”
MORE: Mike Bacon - Tired of words, excuses and justifications, it’s done now.... just get us up!Lambert’s Blues have now lost their last three games, following defeats at Sunderland and then cup exits to Portsmouth and Crawley, heading into a 10-day break from action.
When play resumes Town have a run of three successive home games, with Shrewsbury, Hull and Charlton visiting in League One.
“I think we need it and I think every team in the division needs it because the travelling we’ve been doing has been a lot,” Lambert said of his side’s break.
“October had seven or eight games and it was all crammed in, I’m not sure why because that’s tough.”
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