Liam Gibbs exclusive: 'It must have been hard for my dad to see me move to his team’s biggest rival'

Born in Bury St Edmunds, he entered the Tractor Boys academy system as an under-9. He progressed through the age groups before penning his first professional contract on his 17th birthday.

Paul Lambert handed him his senior debut at Portman Road in an EFL Trophy game against Colchester United in November 2019. Gibbs was made captain of the team's under-18 side for their run to the FA Youth Cup semi-finals last season.

Amid speculation of clubs like Manchester United and Leeds monitoring his progress, Gibbs did the unthinkable. He crossed the border and signed a four-year contract with arch-rivals Norwich City.

Despite the criticism he received from those of a blue and white persuasion, Gibbs believes his decision to leave Portman Road has already been justified.

“I’d been there so long and had such a great relationship with everybody there from the players to the staff and everyone involved with it.

“It was definitely tough because that’s all I’ve known. It’s been my life," Gibbs exclusively told the Pink Un.

“But I felt I needed to do something new and leave my comfort zone. That’s what I’ve done and I feel like it has paid off.

“I’d say that it has gone a lot smoother than I had anticipated.

“I had to do what was best for me at that time. I felt that coming here was the best move and it’s paid off, I’ve been on the bench with the first team, I’m training with them every now and again and we’re doing really well with the U23s.

“I’ve definitely enjoyed my time here so far.”

It wasn't just a sporting rivalry that Gibbs was overcoming to cross the border but also one that exists within the confines of his family.

His Suffolk roots mean that being part of an Ipswich supporting family was always going to be a likelihood for Gibbs, who himself doesn't support the Blues.

But it doesn't come closer than his own dad.

Gibbs' father is an avid Ipswich fan and, even though the youngster knows he will want what is best for him, admits it may have been tough for him to accept witnessing him playing in yellow and green.

“My dad is a very big Ipswich fan,” Gibbs revealed.

“I’m one of three brothers and none of us support Ipswich but my dad is a strong Ipswich fan. He obviously wants what is best for me but it must have been hard for him to see me move to his team’s biggest rival.

“I don’t think I’ll be getting him into a Norwich shirt anytime soon.”

The support that has been forthcoming from his dad is reciprocated by Gibbs' ex-teammates in Suffolk, who have stayed in touch with his former colleagues.

Gibbs forged a multitude of strong relationships during his time at Ipswich and even a move across the border wasn't enough to shake their relationships.

But the teenager admits that some at the club who are supporters found it difficult to accept and reveals he has been on the recieving end of plenty of banter from those still at contracted to his former club.

“For them, they are looking at me more as a person," Gibbs said.

“I’m still in contact with some of them and we go out and do stuff. We play golf and whatever. The banter between us is still there, I still get called a snake every now and then.

“But it’s okay. It’s just banter and I know that. It is hard for some people who are true Ipswich fans. We had a couple of players in the team who were Ipswich through and through so they must have found it more difficult than others.

“I’m still in contact with them and they’re okay."

Liam Gibbs made his Ipswich Town league debut last season. (Image: Steve Waller)

In the end, Gibbs made the tough decision to switch clubs in East Anglia due to the pathway currently present for young players at Carrow Road.

Under City's former boss Daniel Farke, a significant number of academy players were handed their debuts. From Max Aarons to Tyrese Omotoye, the bridge between the academy and the first-team has proven fruitful in recent seasons.

Dean Smith has continued that trend by bringing Jon Rowe into the fold.

That has been a criticism of Ipswich and was one presented by Kieron Dyer who resigned from his post as U23 manager last month.

Norwich also hold the attraction of being a Category One status academy, that isn't something shared by Ipswich at this stage. Despite that meaning better facilities and games against higher opposition, it was the pathway to senior football that attracted Gibbs to Norfolk.

“It was mainly it was the pathway that I saw for myself."

“I’ve seen young players go from the U23s into the Norwich first team and they are a club that have to do that to succeed.

“They are bringing young players through. You only have to look at Adam Idah has done really well this season. I saw that and thought ‘okay, is that a pathway I would like to go into to?’ and I felt that it was something I wanted to go into.

“I knew I was going to be playing against bigger opposition and other category one clubs which is challenging myself a bit more but I’m not too drawn to whether I’m playing Cat One or Cat Two.

“As long as I’m developing as a player, that is the main thing for me. I was happy developing at Ipswich, I felt that it was right and then when the time came to move, I felt like that was right as well."

Gibbs will feature for Norwich in Friday night's fixture at Carrow Road against Sunderland as they continue their push for the Premier League 2 Division 2 play-offs.

The midfielder has played 19 times for Alan Neilson's men in a slightly deeper role than he occupied at Ipswich.

As he closes in on his first full season at Norwich, he believes he is a better footballer now than the one that walked tentatively in through the doors of the club's Colney training base last summer.

“I feel I have improved a lot as a player. I’ve changed my role.

“At Ipswich, I was more of an attacking player or a number ten behind the striker but I’ve come here and been more of a defensive midfielder.

“It’s new challenges that I’m facing. I’m now picking up second balls, tracking runners and organising from behind the ball which has definitely helped improve me as a player," the 19-year-old said.

“I think I’m more of an all-round player now. I’ve improved physically in the gym and they do a lot of gym-based work here so I feel like I’ve improved, definitely.”

That improvement in the U23s has been recognised by Smith, who has invited Gibbs over for sessions with the first-team and even included him on the bench for City's FA Cup fixture away at Charlton and again in the Premier League against West Ham in January.

For Gibbs, that highlights the pathway that is available to him. It is a route well known to those who have gone before him.

“I felt really proud of myself. My family were all proud of me. It was massive really to be on the bench in a first team game.

“It came as a bit of a shock as I’d only been here six months but that is what I want to do. I want to be in the first-team pushing everyday to get there. I’ve trained with them and I think that has helped me improve as a player.

“When you first go in there you are like ‘wow, this is quick’ but gradually you get used to it and then when you play U23s it’s a bit slower and you’re used to playing at the first-team tempo.”

That small taste of first-team football at Norwich has left Gibbs wanting more.

After an involvement on the bench and numerous other sessions with the first-team, the midfielder is targetting a Premier League appearance before the final curtain falls on the Canaries this season.

Liam Gibbs has been a regular in Norwich City's U23 side this season. (Image: Norwich City FC)

“If I could do that before the end of the season it would be absolutely massive for me," Gibbs admitted.

“I originally hadn’t planned for that (being on the bench). I was thinking ‘could I go and train with them every now and then’. But I feel like, the way the season has gone for the 23s, if I could get an appearance that would be absolutely massive for me. That is what I’m pushing for.”

Gibbs has already made his senior debut, that arrived at Ipswich under Lambert.

Like the City youngster, Lambert knows the pressure that comes with crossing the divide.

As a 16-year-old, the midfielder featured during a 1-0 defeat to Colchester United in the EFL Trophy back in 2019. The Scot also gave him a start in League One against Charlton in November 2020.

The ex-Norwich boss described the midfielder as 'a really talented footballer' during his spell at Portman Road and urged supporters to give him time to develop.

Gibbs only has positive things to say about Lambert, who was sacked as Ipswich boss last year.

“He was a manager that liked me as a player and gave me that opportunity,” Gibbs said about the former City boss.

“I was only 16 when he put me in that EFL Cup squad and obviously I was absolutely buzzing. When he brought me on, I was even more excited. I have a lot of gratitude towards him.

“He was different in his training methods to other managers that I’ve been with but he definitely liked me as a player and I felt that from him. When you have a manager that likes you it improves you and gives you the confidence to go and express yourself.

“I felt that he could really talk to me one on one. He could tell me key details that a coach who didn’t play in that position might not know. In training, he would pull me the side and tell me little things that helped make me the player I am.”

Gibbs' name is one spoken about with real excitement inside the walls of Colney.

His development will be monitored closely by Smith, who namechecked the teenager as one who he had high hopes for in his recent press conference.

Time is on his side. Gibbs will back himself to make that leap to the first-team. Given his story and decision to swap Ipswich for Norwich, plenty of fans will be hoping they see him in yellow and green consistently for years to come.

You can read all three of our exclusive interviews with members of Norwich City's U23s squad by clicking below:

- Jonathan Tomkinson: From Texas to Carrow Road via Suffolk routes

- Abu Kamara: Inside the mind of City's 17-goal strong striker