'Let's keep havin' you': Norwich boss Wagner reveals Delia Smith phone call backing

David Wagner revealed he recently shared a phone call with Delia Smith. Credit: PA
David Wagner revealed he recently shared a phone call with Delia Smith. Credit: PA

Under-fire Norwich City boss David Wagner has insisted he still has the "full support" of the club's board, after revealing joint majority shareholder Delia Smith personally called him to offer her backing.

Pressure has been growing on the German after a run of eight defeats in 11 Championship games.

That sequence of results has seen the Canaries drop to 17th in the table, just six points above the relegation zone.

Speaking to the press at the club's training centre ahead of Saturday's daunting trip to Cardiff City, Wagner confirmed that he recently had a phone conversation with Smith and husband Michael Wynn Jones, in which the pair reiterated that his job is safe.

  • David Wagner on his phone call with Delia

"I've known from conversations with other people that I have the full support of the owners and the board, but I think Delia picked the phone up at the right moment with Michael, together, and it meant a lot to me," he told ITV News Anglia's Andy Ward.

"They see the reasons why we came into a situation like this. They really see the injury crisis we have. To be so clear, so smart and so intelligent - it's just great to have owners like this that are able to see the big picture."

Wagner also said he was looking forward to working with incoming sporting director Ben Knapper, whose arrival from Arsenal has been brought forward to next week amid Norwich's alarming slide.

Stuart Webber will leave Norwich City on Saturday. Credit: PA

Knapper, 36, was most recently the loans manager at the Premier League giants, and was originally due to start work at Norwich on 27 November.

However, his first day in his new job will now be on Monday, with his predecessor Stuart Webber set to leave Carrow Road after the Cardiff game on Saturday.

"Everyone knows how much I rate Stuart," said Wagner, who was hired by Webber last January, and also at Huddersfield Town in 2015.

"I think he has done fantastic for this football club. I really wish him, from the bottom of my heart, the best.

"I've spoken with Ben (Knapper) a few times. He's a good guy, a good character, and I'm looking forward to working with him."

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