Paul Lambert facts for kids
Lambert managing Aston Villa in 2013
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Paul Lambert | ||
| Date of birth | 7 August 1969 | ||
| Place of birth | Glasgow, Scotland | ||
| Height | 5 feet 11 inches (1.81 m) | ||
| Playing position | Midfielder | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1985–1986 | St Mirren | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1986–1993 | St Mirren | 227 | (14) |
| 1993–1996 | Motherwell | 103 | (6) |
| 1996–1997 | Borussia Dortmund | 44 | (1) |
| 1997–2005 | Celtic | 193 | (14) |
| 2005–2006 | Livingston | 7 | (0) |
| Total | 574 | (35) | |
| National team | |||
| 1990 | Scottish League XI | 1 | (0) |
| 1991–1992 | Scotland U21 | 5 | (2) |
| 1995–1996 | Scotland B | 2 | (0) |
| 1995–2003 | Scotland | 40 | (1) |
| Teams managed | |||
| 2005–2006 | Livingston | ||
| 2006–2008 | Wycombe Wanderers | ||
| 2008–2009 | Colchester United | ||
| 2009–2012 | Norwich City | ||
| 2012–2015 | Aston Villa | ||
| 2015–2016 | Blackburn Rovers | ||
| 2016–2017 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | ||
| 2018 | Stoke City | ||
| 2018–2021 | Ipswich Town | ||
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Paul Lambert (born 7 August 1969) is a Scottish professional football manager and former player. He was most recently the manager of Ipswich Town.
Lambert played as a midfielder. He won the Scottish Cup in 1987 with St Mirren when he was just 17 years old. He also won the UEFA Champions League with Borussia Dortmund. With Celtic, he won all the major Scottish football trophies. For his country, Lambert played 40 games for Scotland and took part in the 1998 FIFA World Cup.
As a manager, Lambert had great success in England's lower football divisions. He led Norwich City to the Premier League with two promotions in a row in 2009–10 and 2010–11. After keeping Norwich in the Premier League, he managed Aston Villa for three seasons. He also managed Blackburn Rovers, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Stoke City, and Ipswich Town.
Contents
Playing Career Highlights
Early Days at St Mirren
Paul Lambert was born in Glasgow, Scotland. He grew up in Linwood, Renfrewshire. He started his professional football career with St Mirren in 1985. When he was only 17, Lambert helped St Mirren win the 1987 Scottish Cup Final. They beat Dundee United in a memorable match. This was the last time a Scottish Cup-winning team was made up entirely of Scottish players. Lambert played for St Mirren for eight years.
Time at Motherwell
In 1993, Lambert joined Motherwell. The club finished third in the Scottish Premier League in his first season. The next season, Motherwell finished as league runners-up, which was their best finish since 1933–34. This also meant they qualified for the 1994–95 UEFA Cup. They played against the German team Borussia Dortmund. Even though Motherwell lost, Dortmund's manager was impressed by Lambert's skills.
Borussia Dortmund: European Champion
After leaving Motherwell, Lambert had trials with big clubs. He signed with Borussia Dortmund in Germany. The manager, Ottmar Hitzfeld, remembered Lambert from their previous match. Lambert quickly became an important player for Dortmund.
In the 1996–97 UEFA Champions League, Dortmund made it to the final. They played against Juventus. Lambert played as a defensive midfielder and did a great job stopping Juventus's star player, Zinedine Zidane. Lambert also helped set up the first goal for Dortmund. They won the final 3–1. This made him the first British player to win the European Cup with a non-UK team.
Lambert left Dortmund in 1997 to return to Scotland. This was because his son had a health issue, and his family wanted to be closer to relatives. The Dortmund fans gave him a warm farewell.
Celtic: A Trophy Haul
In November 1997, Lambert joined Celtic for about £2 million. He quickly became a key player. In his first season, he helped Celtic win the league title. This was their first league win in ten years. It also stopped their rivals, Rangers, from winning ten titles in a row.
During his seven years at Celtic, Lambert won many trophies:
- Four Scottish Premier League titles.
- Two Scottish Cups.
- Two Scottish League Cups.
He was also named the Scottish Football Writer's Player of the Year in 2002. Lambert was the captain when Celtic reached the 2003 UEFA Cup Final in Seville. They lost a tough match to Porto in extra time.
Livingston: A Brief Return
In 2005, Lambert joined Livingston. He was also appointed as their manager. He played a few games to help the team, but his main focus was on managing. He resigned in February 2006 after a short time.
International Career: Playing for Scotland
Paul Lambert played 40 games for the Scotland national team. He also captained the team 15 times.
He played in all three of Scotland's matches at the 1998 FIFA World Cup. Scotland played against Brazil, Norway, and Morocco.
Lambert scored his only goal for Scotland in 2002. It was in a Euro 2004 qualifier against the Faroe Islands. The game ended in a 2–2 draw. His last game for Scotland was in 2003, fittingly in Dortmund, where he had achieved so much club success.
In 2009, Paul Lambert was added to the Scottish Football Hall of Fame.
Managerial Journey
Wycombe Wanderers: Cup Success
In 2006, Lambert became the manager of Wycombe Wanderers. He led the team to the League Cup semi-finals. This was a big achievement for a team from the fourth tier of English football. They even held Chelsea to a 1–1 draw in one leg before losing the tie. Lambert left Wycombe in 2008.
Colchester United: A Strong Start
Lambert took over as manager of Colchester United in 2008. He started well, winning his first game. His team finished in the middle of the League One table. In August 2009, his team had a huge 7–1 win against Norwich City.
Norwich City: Back-to-Back Promotions
After that big win, Lambert became the new manager of Norwich City in August 2009. He led Norwich to win the League One title in April 2010. This meant they were promoted to the Championship.
Norwich's success continued into the next season. They achieved a second promotion in a row, reaching the Premier League. This was a rare feat, as they were the first team to do this in 11 years. Lambert's Norwich team was known for not losing two league games in a row during his first two seasons.
In 2012, Lambert was added to the Norwich City Hall of Fame. After keeping Norwich in the Premier League, he decided to leave the club.
Aston Villa: Premier League Challenge
In June 2012, Lambert became the new manager of Aston Villa. His first Premier League win with Villa was a 2–0 victory against Swansea City.
His team faced some tough times, including a very heavy defeat against Chelsea. However, Lambert managed to guide Villa to safety from relegation. They finished 15th in the league. He was praised for working with a very young team. Key players like Christian Benteke and Brad Guzan joined under his management. Villa also reached the League Cup semi-finals that season.
Lambert continued to manage Aston Villa for the 2013–14 and 2014–15 seasons. He tried to bring in more experienced players. However, after a difficult run of games, he left Aston Villa in February 2015.
Blackburn Rovers: Championship Survival
Lambert was appointed manager of Blackburn Rovers in November 2015. He helped the club avoid relegation from the Championship. He left Blackburn in May 2016.
Wolverhampton Wanderers: FA Cup Upset
In November 2016, Lambert became the head coach of Wolverhampton Wanderers. His team achieved a big win in the 2016–17 FA Cup, beating Liverpool 2–1 at their home stadium, Anfield. He left the club in May 2017.
Stoke City: Short Stay
Lambert was appointed manager of Stoke City in January 2018. The club was struggling in the Premier League. He tried to improve their form, but he could not stop them from being relegated to the Championship. He left Stoke City after just four months.
Ipswich Town: Relegation and Rebuild
In October 2018, Lambert became the manager of Ipswich Town. This made him the first manager to lead both Ipswich and Norwich. Ipswich was at the bottom of the Championship league. Lambert was unable to prevent them from being relegated to League One in April 2019. This was the first time Ipswich had played in the third tier since 1957.
Despite the relegation, Lambert stayed with Ipswich. He led them to the top of the League One table at the start of the 2019–20 season. He even won the Manager of the Month award for August 2019. In January 2020, he signed a new contract. However, the team's form became inconsistent, and they failed to get promoted. Lambert left Ipswich in February 2021.
Honours
Player
St Mirren
- Scottish Cup: 1986–87
Borussia Dortmund
- UEFA Champions League: 1996–97
Celtic
- Scottish Premier League: 1997–98, 2000–01, 2001–02, 2003–04
- Scottish Cup: 2000–01, 2003–04
- Scottish League Cup: 1997–98, 2000–01
- UEFA Cup runner-up: 2002–03
Scotland U21
- UEFA under-21 Euros: Bronze 1992
Individual
- SFWA Footballer of the Year: 2002
- Scottish Football Hall of Fame: Inducted 2009
Manager
Norwich City
- Football League One: 2009–10
- Football League Championship runner-up: 2010–11
Individual
- Football League One Manager of the Month: January 2009, December 2009, January 2010, August 2019, September 2020
- Football League One Manager of the Year: 2009–10
- Football League Championship Manager of the Month: March 2017
- Football League Championship Manager of the Year: 2010–11
- Norwich City FC Hall of Fame
See also
In Spanish: Paul Lambert para niños
