Lambert tells Canaries to stay grounded

NORWICH manager Paul Lambert will not allow his players to believe winning in the Premier League is easy as they prepare to take on Sunderland tonight.

The Canaries recorded a first top-flight victory at Bolton last weekend which saw them bounce back from a disappointing home loss to West Brom.

However, despite the jubilation which greeted a first away Premier League win over a spell of 17 years for the Norfolk club, Lambert — who has overseen successive promotions from League One — is determined to keep things in perspective.

“You can’t forget where you were. If you do that then I think you are making a grave error, like thinking you have arrived and that it will be easy,” Lambert said.

“It is nothing like that at all. In my own mind I know what has been achieved here.”

The Norwich manager added: “I will never forget that two years ago we were in League One, and we were there for a reason — it is not a place you want to go back to.’’

For his part, Sunderland boss Steve Bruce returns to Norwich tonight knowing the lesson he learnt there 27 years ago remains just as relevant today.

Bruce endured a disastrous debut for the Canaries when he scored a first-minute own goal against Liverpool on the opening day of the 1984-85 season after his move from Gillingham, but went on to pick up a winners’ medal in the League Cup final that season.

The central defender spent three-and-a-half years at Carrow Road before his form alerted Manchester United boss Alex Ferguson to his prowess — and the rest is history.

He said: “In my first game for Norwich, I scored an own goal after 30 seconds — it was against Liverpool at home — and I think I scored a second own goal as well about 22 minutes later.

“[Kenny] Dalglish cut inside Dave Watson — if you remember Dalglish’s trick, his favourite one, he cut inside and bent it in the far corner with his left foot.

“I was on the line and I tried to get my head on that. I headed it and I headed that one in as well, so I had got two own goals after 28 minutes.

“I think they were calling for my head that day as well — ‘Who’s this clown we have bought here from Gillingham? Get him back to Gillingham’.

“Six months later, we were winning the cup against Sunderland, ironically, at Wembley.

“I had gone from the third division to playing in the first division, as it was then, so for that, I will always be grateful to Norwich.’’

However, having twice led Birmingham to promotion to the Barclays Premier League, Bruce has a good appreciation of the job Norwich boss Paul Lambert has done.

Bruce said: “To go into Norwich and have back-to-back promotions is a wonderful achievement.

“I still keep in touch with one or two people down there. I can’t quite believe it is 25 years ago — it’s unbelievable — but I am very pleased for them.”