Burnley fanzines and national press are fanning the flames to keep the rumours on boiling point regarding Paul Lambert and a possible move.

There has been a split among supporters as the specuulation has grown, based upon a seemingly brusque brush-off by the Norwich City manager when grilled by the press this morning.

Coinicdentally, a year ago tomorrow, BBC Radio Norfolk carried a story that Paul Lambert was linked with the Burnley job that he denied back then.

All it required the fans were saying, was a simple yes or no. Nobody disagreed, in fact the silence just fanned the flames even more.

One Burnley site reported that Sky Sports and BBC Radio Norfolk left work at 5.45 saying that he would be at Norwich tomorrow with "no more on long term future".

There is a game of football tomorrow. A third round tie of the FA Cup where we play host to Leyton Orient. Nobody was interested in the game. In fact it was starting to look as though it might turn into a lynching party.

It is no help when Lambert's family life is taken into consideration. His wife and children live north of the border, and no Norwich City supporter needs reminding of just how arduous the journey is as one tries to drive anywhere out of East Anglia.

Therefore, any hint that Lambert wants to move for the sake of his family life and people immediately sympathise with his plight, if not with what his leaving will probably do to Norwich City at such a delicate pinnacle in the season.

So it was with tremendous relief that, while staring at the NewsNow feed as it refreshed every 5 minutes, First News, the Norwich City official news media, carried this statement from Paul Lambert.

"I said last week there was nothing in the Burnley speculation. Today I said I was happy with the Club's statement and I meant it. I can't stop speculation linking me with other clubs but I've said on numerous occasions before that I am happy here and that is still the case.

"The players and the fans have been tremendous for us since we joined here and what they have achieved over the last 16 months or so is absolutely phenomenal, as I keep saying.

"We've got a job to do here, starting with an important FA Cup match against Leyton Orient tomorrow and that's what I want everyone to be focussing on. I want to put the speculation to bed - I've never had any intention of going elsewhere and nothing has changed. All the speculation is wide of the mark and hopefully now the rumour mill about the Burnley job can focus elsewhere and we can all move on."

It is reassuring to read that confirmation. Admittedly, it has been a long day, and much skullduggery may have taken place between various parties, but the fact is that Paul Lambert has said he is staying put.

As for the claims and Burnley's statement, does McNally now go to the FA to make a claim for compensatio for unsettling the club, the players and the supporters at such a critical time? If there is any hope for a compensation package, he should. Besides, Burnley can afford it, what with the parachute payments and all.

Photo: Action Images

allwaysbelieved added 10:05 - Jan 8 Go to the FA for unsettling the club, RUMOUR has it PL contacted Burnley directly and a meeting took place between his agent and B Flood, take that to the FA and they will laugh their socks off. Keep quiet and it will not embarrass Mr Lambert
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MutzNutZ added 10:46 - Jan 8 Rumour has it that I won the Euro Lottery last night and I am investing every penny in Norwich City. There's a hole in the bucket, dear Lisa...
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