Clement relishes Ipswich derby challenge

Norwich City head coach Philippe Clement said he is ready to "embrace" the challenge of his first East Anglian derby against Ipswich Town.

Saturday's lunchtime kick-off (12:30 BST) pits two of the Championship's form teams against each other, with Norwich looking to reverse the result of the game at Portman Road earlier in the season, when they lost 3-1 with Liam Manning in charge.

Clement has plenty of experience of derbies in his native Belgium, France and Scotland, where he was in charge of Rangers.

"I loved it because the passion was really pure, sometimes raw also. People have a passion for their club and for football," he told BBC Radio Norfolk. "I loved those moments, so I'm sure I'm going to enjoy tomorrow.

"You feel the excitement of everybody around you, the people in the building. I hear also from fans that my wife met while she was in the city.

"I've been in a lot of derbies in more than 30 years in football. I know it's always a special occasion for the fans - it's a life or death thing almost - and I enjoy those moments."

Clement said his players had responded "brilliantly" to the pressure of being in the relegation places when he arrived, and although he is sure they can cope with the pressure, he does not want to see too many enjoying themselves during the game.

"We are growing and getting better and doing a lot of good things. It's a good test for my team. Enjoying is not being happy that your players are happy, enjoying is winning a derby.

"They need to do the right things for that. You want to be better than the last game, that's the mentality I want to see from the team. If they succeed, they can enjoy afterwards but not during the game."

On Ipswich counterpart Kieran McKenna, Clement added: "He's a manager with a really clear system, way of working, really clear principles. He's done a really good job there so Ipswich are a tough team to beat. That's why they are playing for promotion, why they are in second place."