please log in to view this image Round 42 Norwich City 1 - 3 Fulham FT HT 0 - 1Attendance: 27,023 Referee: Andrew Madley Assistant Referees: Adam Crysell & Robert Hyde Fourth Official: Darren Blunden Date: Friday 14th April 2017 Venue: Carrow Road Kick-Off: 03:00PM please log in to view this image KIO's not606 Match Preview As we enter the business end of the season with just five matches remaining, Norwich City welcome Fulham to Carrow Road tomorrow in Round 42 of the 2016-17 Sky Bet EFL Championship campaign. For once in many a long time the Canaries have nothing but pride to play for as the season reaches it’s climax, Fulham however still have play-off aspirations and will no doubt prove to be formidable opponents for the home side. The Cottagers have been somewhat of a ‘Bogey’ team for City over the years with the Canaries managing just one solitary victory over the West Londoners in the last 19 attempts. please log in to view this image Graham Dorrans (left) celebrates the second of his penalty conversions against Fulham in October Earlier this season the two sides played out a 2-2 draw at Craven Cottage where despite City taking a 2-0 lead into the break courtesy of a penalty brace from Graham Dorrans, the ‘Curse of the Cottagers’ came back to haunt the visitors. A deflected goal from Stefan Johansen in the 55th minute and then a superb solo finish from Ex Canary Chris Martin 11 minutes later ensured a share of the spoils for the Whites. please log in to view this image Chris Martin (centre) after scoring the equaliser for the Cottagers against City So far Canaries Caretaker boss Alan Irvine has resisted the temptation to blood new youngsters into the first team, arguably tomorrow could be the ideal time to do so with Norwich having little or nothing to play for in real terms. James Maddison and Ben Godfrey are two that must be chomping at the bit for a start and many of the Canary faithful would undoubtedly welcome their inclusion in the starting line up. Graham Dorrans definitely misses out tomorrow for City after suffering a setback upon his return at Aston Villa recently, as do other long term absentees Matt Jarvis and Louis Thompson. please log in to view this image Canaries' long suffering wide man Matt Jarvis As for the Cottagers other than full back Denis Odoi they have a fully fit squad to choose from for their visit to East Anglia, with one time Canary loanee Scott Parker now back and available for selection after a back injury. please log in to view this image Fulham full back Denis Odoi misses out tomorrow please log in to view this image BBC Match Preview Here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/39522682 Norwich have won just one of their last 15 league meetings with Fulham (D4 L10), though that win did come in the most recent game at Carrow Road (4-2 in May 2015). Fulham have scored in all but one of their last 16 league games against the Canaries. Wes Hoolahan has created 42 chances in the Championship in 2017 - the only player with more is Tom Cairney (46). Tom Cairney and Sone Aluko have created more chances for each other than any other Championship pair this season (45). Norwich are unbeaten in nine league games at Carrow Road, winning six and drawing three. Sone Aluko has been involved in eight goals in his last eight league games (three goals and five assists). please log in to view this image Sky Sports Match Preview Here: http://www.skysports.com/football/norwich-vs-fulham/358608 Alan Irvine’s Match Preview Alan Irvine previews tomorrow's game "It was terrific [v Reading] and a full credit to the players for the way they reacted to the Huddersfield game." "Our performance was brilliant, with and without the ball. The fans must have enjoyed that because it was one of those special days you'll remember forever, it will certainly last in my memory.” "Clearly, we want the same kind of level of performance again. To get the same result is extremely difficult as it doesn't happen very often but there's a need for us to try and reproduce that level." City give Reading a footballing lesson "They're a good side [Fulham], and the side in the division with the most possession overall.” "They want to play out from the back and have some really talented players in midfield and up-front. They've also got full-backs who go forward repeatedly, so we know it will be another very difficult game.” "With our previous games being against Huddersfield, Aston Villa and Reading, we know Fulham can cause us similar problems. Hopefully we can cause them some problems as well.” "I've been impressed by the way Slaviša Jokanović’s teams play and they will be a dangerous opponent for us. We just have to keep trying to win games and see where that takes us.” "We can only control what we can control, and that's our level of performance and the results we get from that." Slaviša Jokanović’s Match Preview please log in to view this image Slaviša Jokanović gives his thoughts "A fantastic game is behind them [Norwich], they played very well, destroyed Reading.” “We’ve analysed what happened in this game and in the game they played before, and we are confident and believe we can offer our best performance and fight for the victory.” “I need brave people, I need people with enough experience for this moment, we need to read and interpret what happens during games a little bit better and be available to fight all together with the ball, or without the ball too.” “It’s two important games in front of us, we’re confident, we’re in a good mental moment and we believe we can win the games that are in front of us.” “We’ve played 41 games, now it’s a crucial moment of the competition and we need to find extra motivation and extra power and extra desire to try and find our best performance in these five games in front of us.” “Five games are left but really what we want is eight games still to play this season, and we’re going to push hard for this target.” “I am confident. I am optimistic that we can improve ourselves and make some more steps. If you’re seventh in the table it’s natural to want to push a little bit stronger and finish the competition in the top-six.” Current Form (Last 6 Competitive Fixtures – Most Recent First) Norwich City WLLWDD NORWICH HOME Norwich have won 65%, drawn 20% and lost 15% of their last 20 home games. In their last 20 home games against teams positioned in the top half of the table, Norwich have won 5, drawn 6 and lost 9 of these matches. In their last 20 home games against teams positioned above them in the table, Norwich have won 5, drawn 6 and lost 9 of these matches. Fulham WLWLDW FULHAM AWAY Fulham have won 45%, drawn 30% and lost 25% of their last 20 away games. In their last 20 away games against teams positioned in the top half of the table, Fulham have won 4, drawn 6 and lost 10 of these matches. In their last 20 away games against teams positioned below them in the table, Fulham have won 9, drawn 8 and lost 3 of these matches. MATCH STATISTICS www.kickoff.co.uk Match History Norwich City Wins: 12 Fulham Wins: 22 Games Drawn: 13 Norwich City and Fulham have met 47 times overall in competitive fixtures, the Cottagers historically having the upper hand with 22 wins to City’s 12. The first meeting between the two clubs was on 1st February 1908 at Craven Cottage in the 2nd Round Proper of the FA Cup, the hosts progressing to the 3rd Round with a 2-1 victory over the newly nicknamed ‘Canaries’ Norwich’s best win over Fulham to date is by 4 goals to 2 and was on 2nd May 2015 at Carrow Road in a Championship match up. On the final day of the 2004-05 Premier League season Fulham thrashed City 6-0 to record their best ever win, a result which condemned the Canaries to relegation to the second tier after just one season back in the top flight. please log in to view this image A despondant Robert Green after the 6-0 thrashing at Craven Cottage in May 2005 On 18th September 1937 in League Division Two at Craven Cottage the two sides shared 7 goals with the match finishing 4-3 to the visitors, this remains the highest aggregate score between the Cottagers and the Canaries thus far. All games played between the two have been League fixtures other than three FA Cup ties, the sides have never met in the Football League Cup. Highest Norwich City Score Norwich City 4 Fulham 2 Highest Fulham Score Fulham 6 Norwich City 0 Highest Aggregate (7) Fulham 3 Norwich City 4 Club Connections Those to have played for both Norwich and Fulham include: Roger Brown, Dean Coney, Dickson Etuhu, Mark Fotheringham, Elvis Hammond (Norwich loan), David Healy (Norwich loan), Chris Martin (Fulham loan), Leon McKenzie (Fulham loan), Elliott Omuzusi (Norwich loan), Scott Parker (Norwich loan), Paul Peschisolido (Norwich loan), Zesh Rehman (Norwich loan), John Ryan, Dejan Stefanovic, Michael Turner (Fulham loan), Mark Walton and Tony Warner (Norwich loan). please log in to view this image Dean Coney who managed just a solitary goal in his spell with the Canaries Former City player and manager Peter Grant was first team coach at Craven Cottage. City’s Murphy twins Josh and Jacob trialled as schoolboys with Fulham but were rejected. Canary Hall of Famer Mark Bowen was Assistant Manager at Fulham. Jimmy Bullard who signed for the Cottagers in a multi-million pound deal in 2006 failed a trial with City in 2001. One time Canary assistant boss Lee Clark made 149 league appearances for Fulham scoring 20 goals. Ex Canary youngster Cameron McGeehan was with Fulham as a schoolboy. Former Norwich CEO David McNally was Managing Director at Craven Cottage. Former Fulham custodian Tony Parks joined the Canaries as goalkeeping coach in 2014. Ex Fulham striker Bobby Zamora was rejected by Norwich as a schoolboy. please log in to view this image Bobby Zamora was rejected by Norwich as a schoolboy Did you know? Fulham were founded in 1879 as ‘Fulham St Andrews Football & Cricket Club’ Fulham are the oldest-established football team from London to have played in the Premier League. Fulham played at various stadia until 1896 when they moved into Craven Cottage which has been their home ever since, apart from 2002-04 when they ground shared Loftus Road with Queen’s Park Rangers while their own stadium was being renovated. please log in to view this image Craven Cottage in 1879 They have produced many great English footballers including; Johnny Haynes, George Cohen, Bobby Robson, Rodney Marsh and Alan Mullery. please log in to view this image Rodney Marsh (right) in his second spell at Fulham seen here with George Best As a second division side, Fulham contested the 1975 FA Cup final with West Ham United at the old Wembley Stadium. The Hammers won the match 2-0 with both goals coming from Alan Taylor who went on to have two spells at Norwich. Under ex England boss Roy Hodgson the Cottagers also contested the UEFA Europa League Final in 2010 where they lost 2-1 to Atlético Madrid after extra time. Fulham are unbeaten at home in European competition, in 23 games, with a record of 17 wins and six draws. Fulham fans consider Chelsea as their main rivals with Queen’s Park Rangers being secondary. TEAM LINE UPS: please log in to view this image Listen to full match commentary on BBC Radio Norfolk 95.1 / 104.4FM, 855kHz & DAB Digital Radio With Chris Goreham please log in to view this image and Guest Match Summariser Cédric Anselin please log in to view this image …… And don’t forget to tune in to #canarycall post match with Cédric and Rob Butler please log in to view this image OT please log in to view this image C
Brilliant stuff again Rich, you deserve to have the team playing so much better in recognition of your efforts! Well done
Great thread as usual KIO and I'll be calling in at the bookies on my way to the Glasshouse to try and recoup my losses from last week!!!
Anyone else hoping Huddersfield slip up today and Brighton win at Wolves in the later kick off? Brighton have a monster +30 goal difference advantage so could effectively seal promotion today.
One Chrissy 'anti-football' Hughton, there's only one..... Mr Angry from Cromer just replied to a tweet on the invisible man, a.k.a James Maddison:
Congrats to Alex Tettey, who makes his 150th appearance today. Tempered a little by saying his best days are surely behind him - get well soon Louis Thompson
The youff will not get a look in for the last few matches as SW will want to assess the senior players to decide who is for the chop.
We haven't come back from a goal down since 10 man Nottingham Forest. Will we change that awful run today ? No