Paul Lambert has received unlikely backing as he battles to steer Aston Villa clear of the relegation dogfight with the visit of Wigan looming tomorrow.
Andre Villas-Boas was the architect of Spurs’ 4-0 win at Villa Park on Boxing Day as Lambert stared at the uncomfortable stat of played two lost two, goals for nil and goals against 12.
Villa’s recent win at Anfield has been overtaken by two emphatic defeats that have tested the belief of the Villa supporters in their new boss for the first time.
Importing a young and inexperienced group of players into the first team bought Lambert time with the home fans but after two heavy defeats questions are being asked about how they can handle a scrap for survival.
“I think for them now it is important to find stability defensively,” the Spurs boss, who is no stranger to being questioned, suggested. “Looking at what is happening I think Paul is the right person.
“He is developing a very young team, and it has nothing to do with teams of the past. So hopefully, by him being given time to do that, Villa can achieve the results they want.”
Lambert has earned a reputation for being single minded as he transformed Norwich from a League One side to an eye-catching Premiership side without resorting to cheque-book management.
All of the qualities that were used at Carrow Road will be required over the next five months with Lambert’s faith in his players unaltered.
“There is no pressure on these lads at all,” the Villa boss claimed. “They will go again and give us everything- they will.
“Even though people got carried away before about us beating Norwich and Liverpool, I never did and neither did the team. We never let them get too high or too low, because the nature of football is that you can get hurt at any moment.
“We had a good chat the other day with them. For a lot of them, this is their first crack at Premier League football.
“It is not just the defence, it is everywhere. It is unfair to criticise the defence. We are in this together, and collectively we have to stop this.”
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