Leaping Lambert: No way Crouch is going to Chelsea
Paul lambert started with a win and then ended one of the best rumours of the transfer window.
The Scot guided his new boys to a morale-boosting victory over a worryingly poor Huddersfield in his first match in charge after replacing Mark Hughes before ruling out a Chelsea move for Peter Crouch.
Second-half strikes from Joe allen and Mame Diouf secured a key three points at a relieved bet365 Stadium, where the 36-year-old target man came off the bench with the game won.
Crouch’s absence from the starting startin line- up triggered thoughts thought that an unlikely, muchpublicised publici switch to antonio Conte’s men could well be on the cards.
But lambert la is not entertaining bids fo for the former England striker — or any of his players, for that matter. ma ‘I’ve no intention of letting him go,’ he said. ‘I don’t want anybody an leaving — we need everybody.’ everybo
Crouch’s Crouc presence on the field is well known. kno But his new manager believes his demeanour off it can be key a as he looks to restore some harmony harmon to what has been an unhappy unhapp camp. ‘If ‘ If there’s the a nicer person in football footba I’ve yet to meet him,’ lambert lam added. ‘I sat with him yesterday and talked to him. him What a lad he is.’ The T Premier league would do well to remove all trace of the first half of this one before be they come to the table tabl to negotiate the next television televis deal. Delete the film, trample on the tapes, wipe the hard drive. dr It was that bad. But following followin the break, lambert’s masterplan masterp kicked in. With Huddersfield’s H high press running runni low on energy, balls over the top wreaked havoc and resulted in both allen and an Diouf’s goals. Scepticism greeted the new man’s arrival in the ranks of the more cynical Stoke supporters but at the end his triumphant charges left the arena to cries of ‘Paul lambert’s Barmy army’.
It was not lost on captain Ryan Shawcross, who returned from injury and performed well at the heart of the Potters defence.
‘If you look back, Tony Pulis probably wasn’t the fans’ first choice when he arrived and Mark Hughes definitely wasn’t,’ he observed. ‘The fans would probably want Pep Guardiola, but he wasn’t available.’
lambert’s impact was immediate. Stoke were organised and efficient. Watford, Bournemouth, Brighton and leicester await. Safety is there for the taking. While it was only one match against fading opposition, the move for lambert, who has never been relegated from the Premier league, looks like it may be inspired. Shawcross is not surprised.
‘Our owners haven’t achieved what they have in business without being very smart and knowing what they are doing,’ he added. ‘It’s up to the bosses to decide on the best man, and obviously Paul lambert gave a fantastic interview and we’ve seen this week what a great manager he is.’
lambert could not have wished for more obliging opponents. Huddersfield’s bright start seems a distant memory. a run of no wins in six and three straight defeats has brought the grim reaper of relegation to the door, although, for an honest David Wagner, he has been there all season.
‘We know our aim is to survive and relegation is always around us — even if maybe other people in England have thought different,’ he said. ‘It is a situation that we didn’t like but nothing to surprise us. We will stay cool, try to recover, focus on ourselves and know how humble we must be to collect further points.’
Next up for Huddersfield? liverpool and Manchester united. Good luck. STOKE CITY (4-3-3): Butland 6; Bauer 7, Shawcross 7, Zouma 7, Pieters 6.5; Fletcher 7, Allen 8, Adam 7.5 (Cameron 71min, 6); Shaqiri 7.5, Diouf 7 (Crouch 77), ChoupoMoting 7.5 (Ramadan 90). Subs not used: Grant, Ireland, Martins Indi, Edwards. Scorers: Allen 53, Diouf 69. Booked: Bauer. Manager: Paul Lambert 7. HUDDERSFIELD TOWN (4-2-3-1): Lossl 6; Hadergjonaj 6, Jorgensen 6, Schindler 6, Malone 5.5; Hogg 6 (Depoitre 79), Mooy 6; Van la Parra 5.5, Ince 5 (Quaner 56, 5.5), Pritchard 5.5 (Sabiri 60, 5.5); Mounie 5.5. Subs not used: Coleman, Smith, Kongolo, Williams. Booked: Hogg. Manager: David Wagner 5.5. Referee: Michael Oliver. Attendance: 29,785.