Matt Gill admits he jumped at the chance to work with Paul Lambert at Ipswich Town.

Lambert's shock appointment at Portman Road was followed by the news that Gill had quit as Norwich's Under-23s boss to join the Scot as his assistant.

Gill revealed the pair have kept in touch since he left Carrow Road and how Lambert has helped him in his coaching career so far.

Whilst Gill's association with Norwich was a consideration the chance to work with Lambert was too good to turn down.

'It all happened very quickly but I've known the gaffer a long time and we've kept in touch since he released me from Norwich,' he said. 'I've been able to go into all of his other clubs and watch him and his staff at work before then going into coaching myself at my last club, Tranmere.

'When I was at the academy in Norwich I continued to get his advice and spoke to him regularly, so when he called me it was a great phone call to take. I jumped at the chance to work with him here.'

Gill was highly thought of at Norwich as he helped bring along the likes of Jamal Lewis, Max Aarons and Todd Cantwell to make them genuine first team options during his time in the academy.

MORE: Matt Gill joins Ipswich Town as first team coachHowever, he will now be giving his all to the Ipswich cause as they look to pull away from the foot of the Championship table.

'I played for a lot of different clubs during my career,' he said. 'The opportunity to work with the manager here was massive and one I couldn't turn down.

I spoke to my family and close friends and it was pretty overwhelming and something I was so excited about and desperate to join up with him as quickly as possible.

'I'd like to think all of the clubs I played for (Peterborough, Notts County, Exeter, Norwich, Walsall, Bristol Rovers and Tranmere) would feel I gave my all. Sometimes I didn't perform great as a player but I always gave everything and it's the same with coaching.'

Lambert famously galvanised the Canaries, leading them to successive promotions and whilst Gill only played a bit-part role as a player during that rise, he believes Lambert is now an even better manager.

'I was a player at Norwich when he (Lambert) first came in and we were in a tough position then but he had a real knack of galvanising everyone very quickly and bringing groups of people together,' he said. 'I didn't play a big part in the two years I was there at all but he made me feel a part of it.

'He did that with everyone and that's a real strength of his because he makes you feel part of it whether you're the chef, the cleaner or working on reception. 'He's brilliant with people and a vastly experienced manager who has worked at some big clubs and has travelled around to see how other people work. I'm sure he's a better manager now than he was at Norwich because he can't not be, given the experiences he's had.'