Socceroo Robertson nets in Lampard's managerial return
Coventry City coach Frank Lampard admits he has plenty to work on after his first match in charge ended in a 2-2 draw against fellow Championship strugglers Cardiff City.
It looked for most of the second half as though Lampard was going to have to pick the bones out of a defeat in what was his first match in a dugout for 18 months.
The Sky Blues fell behind twice and although they responded rapidly the first time, they struggled to find a way through once two-time Socceroos midfielder Alex Robertson had put Cardiff ahead again.
However, Victor Torp came to the hosts' rescue with a late penalty that gave Lampard his first point and denied the Bluebirds their first away win since April.
"I think being tougher is something as a group we can be - that's not to say the lads aren't tough - in terms of our performance at the minute it's slightly off, I felt today, so there's lots to take on and work on," Lampard said.
Cardiff led after only four minutes when Robertson's corner was headed in by Yakou Meite for his first goal of the season.
It took just three minutes for Coventry to hit back through Ephron Mason-Clark, but 21-year-old Robertson looked to be sending the Bluebirds towards victory when he arrowed in a superb low drive from outside the box two minutes into the second half.
💥 💥 💥 The piledriver!#EFL | @CardiffCityFC pic.twitter.com/QVrfH5WE5J
— Sky Bet Championship (@SkyBetChamp) November 30, 2024
Torp rescued the hosts from the spot in the 89th minute when Calum Chambers was adjudged to have handled Ellis Simms' cross inside his area.
"We're getting back to where we were before, when we were winning and when we went unbeaten in a lot of games," Robertson told Cardiff City TV.
"We're just trying to get back there and today was one step closer ... I wish we got the win, but we've just gotta keep fighting for it."
Leeds United blew the chance to return to the top of the table as they crashed to their third defeat of the season, going down 1-0 to Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park.
Burnley moved above Daniel Farke's men into second place as the Clarets won 2-0 at Stoke City to make it four wins in a row.
Managerless Hull City remain stuck in the relegation zone after a 3-1 defeat at Middlesbrough, while bottom club Portsmouth surrendered a 2-0 lead to draw 2-2 with Swansea City in south Wales.
West Bromwich Albion were forced to settle for their 10th draw of the season after it finished 1-1 at Preston North End and late goals saw Norwich City enjoy a 4-2 win over Luton Town at Carrow Road.
Problems continue to mount for Wayne Rooney at Plymouth Argyle after a 4-0 away loss to Bristol City.
Oxford United salvaged a 1-1 draw at home to Millwall and Watford were forced to settle for a goalless draw against second-bottom QPR.
With AAP.