Portsmouth promotion-rival boss confesses pressure is getting to side as fellow Championship chaser states team are ‘knackered’

And Oxford United boss Karl Robinson admitted his team are ‘knackered’ after the latest round of games in League One.

Ipswich fell to another loss as went to down to a 2-1 reverse at Blackpool, with the decisive goal coming in stoppage time.

That made it five defeats in seven for the Tractor Boys, who lie five points off the play-off places.

When asked if his team were feeling the pressure, Lambert told the East Anglian Daily Times: ‘Yeah, but I'll go back to it. If you don't want pressure, don't play for the football club.

‘This football club brings that. You either embrace it or you get frightened by it.

‘You have to embrace it. It's a big club and you need big people to step up to the plate. Now is the time they need to step up to the plate.’

Lambert feels his side now have to win the next two home games against Fleetwood and Coventry.

He added: ‘We have to win them both. If we do that we are right back in it, but we have to win them.’

Oxford United moved back into the top six with a 2-1 win over struggling Southend.

Boss Karl Robinson reckons the pace of games is having an impact on the U’s, after a lacklustre display.

He told the Oxford Mail: ‘My players in there are knackered, they’re so tired. It looked like we didn’t have that zest we normally have.

‘It’s been a long week and a long month.

‘But the big thing for me was how calm we stayed.

‘Amongst all the negative things that could have gone against us, we kept our heads down and trying to do the right things.’

Elsewhere, Rotherham boss, Paul Warne, felt his team deserved more as the leaders were held to a 1-1 draw by MK Dons.

Warne told the Rotherham Advertiser: ‘It's disappointing we haven't won it.

‘This season whenever we've got a second goal we've usually gone on to win handsomely.​

‘This point doesn't feel a good point but it might be at the end of the season. The lads gave everything. We pressed the ball high up and won the ball back.​ With a bit of luck, we could have won the game.​

‘We did enough to win. We put the ball in good enough areas and it should have been enough to win a football match. I don't really know what more we could have done.​’

Wycombe boss Gareth Ainsworth believes his side were better for long periods before they fell to a 3-1 reverse at Doncaster. Ainsworth is adamant the Chairboys will be in the promotion shake-up, however.

He told wycombewanderers.co.uk: ‘Unfortunately it’s a defeat but we’ll be back.

‘It’s half-time and for 43 minutes we dominated the game.

‘Doncaster, if I’m being honest, would’ve felt lucky going in 1-0 up at half-time.

‘Unfortunately, it happens but even in second half at 1-1 it was really positive and I thought we would win the game.

‘With 10 games to go we’re in fourth place. That’s brilliant we’ve got some really winnable games and we will be right in the mix.’