If you can't beat them, appoint them. At the lowest ebb in their recent history, Norwich City inverted the usual principle about signing for a stronger side to raid their rivals and begin a barely credible revival.
It was completed at Portsmouth's Fratton Park on Monday night, the side that propped up League One in August 2009 being promoted to the Premier League.
Go back 20 months and Norwich, playing their first match in English football's third tier for 49 years, were beaten 7-1 in an East Anglian derby by Colchester United.
It is the heaviest home defeat of City's 109-year existence, but their response was swift and, ultimately, inspired: they got rid of Bryan Gunn, the manager whose goalkeeping earned him legendary status in Norfolk, and hired the orchestrator of their embarrassment.
In a move that cost £425,000 (Dh2.6 million) in compensation, Paul Lambert was lured from Colchester to become City's fifth manager in three-and-a-half years.
Ninety-nine games, 56 wins and two promotions later, managerial change has become the unspoken fear at Carrow Road: Lambert rejected interest from Scottish giants Celtic, his former club, last year, and Burnley, in January, and is rumoured to be on shortlists at Everton and West Ham United should there be a vacancy at either club.
In truth, the 41-year-old's exploits were always going to attract attention.
He has become the first man since Joe Royle 11 years ago to take a team from League One to the top flight in successive seasons and, while trying to deflect credit for his latest success to his players, has nonetheless described it as "an absolute miracle".
This is, he has argued, an achievement to rank with any in his career. "The magnitude of this is certainly right up there," the Scot said.
That is no mean feat; this is a European Cup winner speaking. Indeed, Lambert was the first Briton to conquer the continent with a foreign club.
His first season at Borussia Dortmund culminated in a Champions League final win over Juventus in 1997. Lambert, who crossed for Karl-Heinz Riedle's opening goal, was the unheralded member of a midfield that included Paulo Sousa and Andreas Moller.
"As a player I played with some world-class players - I was the only bad one there," he said, with false modesty.
More accurately, there was little spectacular about Lambert the footballer. Instead, he understood the game, his reading of a match as integral in the midfield holding role as it has since proved in the dugout.
A surprise recruit for Borussia, he had nonetheless helped break the Old Firm duopoly of Celtic and Rangers in Scotland when Alex McLeish's Motherwell finished second.
Returning to his homeland, though he later went back to Germany to study for his coaching badges, the man capped 40 times captained Celtic during eight years at Parkhead.
It was there that Lambert met his role model: Martin O'Neill.
"Paul is so like Martin in a lot of ways," said John Hartson, a former teammate. "He now even has the glasses. He has definitely been studying Martin. Paul is more like O'Neill than Martin is like his old mentor, Brian Clough."
Speaking in 2006, O'Neill said: "When I had him and [the striker] Henrik Larsson at Celtic, the pair were fantastic - they were always the first to arrive and the last to go, and gave everything for the club.
"When I arrived at Celtic, he was already captain, and it was soon evident what a great leader he was on the pitch and in the dressing room."
O'Neill's influence has been apparent on his protege's career.
After Lambert had a false start at Livingston, where he only won two games in six months, O'Neill recommended the Glaswegian to his former employers, Wycombe Wanderers.
He reached the Carling Cup semi-finals with the League Two club and impressed at Colchester, without quite suggesting the level of success he has had at Norwich.
But Lambert's time in the lower leagues was well spent. He built up a mental database of young, hungry players and set about recruiting them.
Simeon Jackson, who scored the goal to clinch promotion, was signed from Gillingham Town; Paul Tierney, the left-back, and David Fox, a midfielder, came from Colchester United; Andrew Crofts, plucked from Brighton and Hove Albion, and Zak Whitbread, recruited from Millwall, were all League One footballers.
Aided by Lambert's policy of deploying a midfield diamond, they have formed a team.
"We have a great bunch of lads," said Grant Holt, the captain and top scorer, who was in League Two two seasons ago. "We've a great spirit and desire."
That is proved by a startling statistic: Norwich have scored 12 injury-time goals this season, earning 11 points in the process.
Much as the players have surpassed themselves, the captain has no doubt where the credit belongs. "The manager has been fantastic," Holt said. "He's a motivator and has been great for us."
sports@thenational.ae
Emergency
Director: Kangana Ranaut
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry
Rating: 2/5
How to avoid crypto fraud
- Use unique usernames and passwords while enabling multi-factor authentication.
- Use an offline private key, a physical device that requires manual activation, whenever you access your wallet.
- Avoid suspicious social media ads promoting fraudulent schemes.
- Only invest in crypto projects that you fully understand.
- Critically assess whether a project’s promises or returns seem too good to be true.
- Only use reputable platforms that have a track record of strong regulatory compliance.
- Store funds in hardware wallets as opposed to online exchanges.
Paatal Lok season two
Directors: Avinash Arun, Prosit Roy
Stars: Jaideep Ahlawat, Ishwak Singh, Lc Sekhose, Merenla Imsong
Rating: 4.5/5
The specs
Engine: Direct injection 4-cylinder 1.4-litre
Power: 150hp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: From Dh139,000
On sale: Now
Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Emirates exiles
Will Wilson is not the first player to have attained high-class representative honours after first learning to play rugby on the playing fields of UAE.
Jonny Macdonald
Abu Dhabi-born and raised, the current Jebel Ali Dragons assistant coach was selected to play for Scotland at the Hong Kong Sevens in 2011.
Jordan Onojaife
Having started rugby by chance when the Jumeirah College team were short of players, he later won the World Under 20 Championship with England.
Devante Onojaife
Followed older brother Jordan into England age-group rugby, as well as the pro game at Northampton Saints, but recently switched allegiance to Scotland.
ULTRA PROCESSED FOODS
- Carbonated drinks, sweet or savoury packaged snacks, confectionery, mass-produced packaged breads and buns
- margarines and spreads; cookies, biscuits, pastries, cakes, and cake mixes, breakfast cereals, cereal and energy bars;
- energy drinks, milk drinks, fruit yoghurts and fruit drinks, cocoa drinks, meat and chicken extracts and instant sauces
- infant formulas and follow-on milks, health and slimming products such as powdered or fortified meal and dish substitutes,
- many ready-to-heat products including pre-prepared pies and pasta and pizza dishes, poultry and fish nuggets and sticks, sausages, burgers, hot dogs, and other reconstituted meat products, powdered and packaged instant soups, noodles and desserts.
SPECS
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Match info
Liverpool 4
Salah (19'), Mane (45 2', 53'), Sturridge (87')
West Ham United 0
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.
When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.
How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
What is Genes in Space?
Genes in Space is an annual competition first launched by the UAE Space Agency, The National and Boeing in 2015.
It challenges school pupils to design experiments to be conducted in space and it aims to encourage future talent for the UAE’s fledgling space industry. It is the first of its kind in the UAE and, as well as encouraging talent, it also aims to raise interest and awareness among the general population about space exploration.
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
Bharatanatyam
A ancient classical dance from the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Intricate footwork and expressions are used to denote spiritual stories and ideas.
The National in Davos
We are bringing you the inside story from the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting in Davos, a gathering of hundreds of world leaders, top executives and billionaires.
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The National in Davos
We are bringing you the inside story from the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting in Davos, a gathering of hundreds of world leaders, top executives and billionaires.
Game Changer
Director: Shankar
Stars: Ram Charan, Kiara Advani, Anjali, S J Suryah, Jayaram
Rating: 2/5
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
Business Insights
- Canada and Mexico are significant energy suppliers to the US, providing the majority of oil and natural gas imports
- The introduction of tariffs could hinder the US's clean energy initiatives by raising input costs for materials like nickel
- US domestic suppliers might benefit from higher prices, but overall oil consumption is expected to decrease due to elevated costs
The specs
Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors
Power: 480kW
Torque: 850Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)
On sale: Now
8 traditional Jamaican dishes to try at Kingston 21
- Trench Town Rock: Jamaican-style curry goat served in a pastry basket with a carrot and potato garnish
- Rock Steady Jerk Chicken: chicken marinated for 24 hours and slow-cooked on the grill
- Mento Oxtail: flavoured oxtail stewed for five hours with herbs
- Ackee and salt fish: the national dish of Jamaica makes for a hearty breakfast
- Jamaican porridge: another breakfast favourite, can be made with peanut, cornmeal, banana and plantain
- Jamaican beef patty: a pastry with ground beef filling
- Hellshire Pon di Beach: Fresh fish with pickles
- Out of Many: traditional sweet potato pudding
How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
