You got this in before my edit. Amadou has just been announced, so any 5pm announcement could be someone else?
Really pleased Amadou is over the line, for me that thoroughly completes my summer wish list. Sounds like the deal makes sense both on and off the pitch. Hopefully he can make a big impact. Alongside Trybull perhaps in tougher games, competing with him in others? We'll see.
I like this from Simon Hughes (I signed up to The Athletic this morning): "Months before Norwich won the Championship, the conversations started between Webber and Farke about the best way forward: should Norwich invest in lots of new signings, or instead try to ensure they kept the players that had taken them to the top flight in the first place by tying them to longer contracts? Webber identified that other clubs competing in the Premier League following an unexpected promotion from the Championship have often found themselves caught in a no-man’s land where they end up doing neither – perhaps spending £30 million on two or three players who don’t necessarily guarantee the improvement of the collective. Webber challenges accepted notions in sport. While he and Farke agree that the highly-rated Jamal Lewis (aged 21), Ben Godfrey (21) and Max Aarons (19) have the athleticism to thrive in the Premier League, they also believe their naivety will sometimes help Norwich. In the quest to find Premier League experience, promoted clubs have often fallen into the trap of signing players that have recently suffered relegation because they are the only affordable and attainable options. This involves Premier League experience of losing every week and being scared of going to places like Anfield. Webber was told last season that Norwich needed players who understood what it was like to go to Rotherham on a cold Tuesday night. He asked the question, “do we really want someone arriving in Rotherham who thinks, ‘this is going to be really hard tonight?’ Or do we want someone who thinks, ‘I just don’t care about all that stuff…’ The players Norwich could get with Premier League experience tended to be the ones with bad Premier League experience, players who have lost more games than they’ve won – to Webber, it suggested that maybe they weren’t actually good enough to play at the highest level. He’d prefer players who can perform on Norwich’s own terms."
Either of those 3 can play with him in the 2, or in the 3 behind Pukki. Plenty of chances for them to play. Amadou has to work hard to get up to fitness, and up to speed with how we play before he gets in the first team. DF often takes a while to bring a new signing into the starting line up. I don't think he will be up to speed by Friday. Although that is the kind of game we could do with a player of his type.
We saw both Vrancic and Leitner deployed on the right of midfield on occasion last season. I think mainly through injury/suspension (it wasn't especially effective), but it does also allow us to tighten up that side a touch with a more withdrawn midfielder, and improve ball retention. Curious to see if that tactic re-emerges, we've not seen it in pre-season as far as I'm aware. I can't see Amadou starting (injuries permitting) for a good while, perhaps the City game in 5 weeks time is a good target. I don't think that DM role is an easy one to slip into seamlessly.
Wouldn't surprise me if the squad aren't training tomorrow, and then travel Thursday night/Friday morning. No way he's straight into the team after at most 1 training session. Makes a complete mockery of all the midfielders who have worked hard in pre-season, and there's no way he's up to speed.
☑️ #Ligue2 | Confirmation : «Après les 12 millions d’euros offerts par Rennes ce week-end, Norwich a proposé 16,5 millions pour le milieu gauche du FC Lorient, Alexis Claude-Maurice.» Via @TelegrammeSport Not sure how reliable this is, but basically says we have offered €16.5m for ACM. Only posted 5min ago on twitter
Those long diagonal passes were a feature of Lille's play under Bielsa (also in evidence last season at Leeds). For us we've seen both Godfrey and Zimmermann make them from CB. It's a powerful surprise variation for a team whose norm is playing out from the back with short passing up to forward players converging into central areas.
I'd say as reliable as this (from the normally completely reliable RobbieBB): "Ah, all is explained. I've had a sneak preview of the video to be published tomorrow welcoming Ibrahim Amadou to the club: Interviewer: "Is it right your game is very simple?" Amadou (trans): "Absolument, just win the ball and give it to Alexis Claude-Maurice; easy"
