2022-23 Season

October is going to be interesting with 8 matches in 4 weeks:



That's only 7 because I couldn't manage to squeeze in the 8th game against Stoke on the 29th - 8 games in 29 days, including games against Watford, Luton, Sheffield United and Burnley in 9 days. Let's hope we get some of our injured players back before then!

https://www.edp24.co.uk/sport/norwich-city/october-matches-will-shape-norwich-city-season-9280950

 

An image on the big screen of Sam Seaman actually smiling would have the whole ground helpless with laughter. That would certainly improve the atmosphere ...........

 

Really tough fixtures that you highlight to have in such a short space of time, no matter if players are back or not

 

With you at the helm buddy, no problem

 

Luxembourg are 2-2 at half time away to Turkey. Sinani is playing on his own up front and scored the second goal. Kabak is on the bench for the Turks.

Edit: Finished 3-3, Those being the only points dropped by Turkey in 5 games.

 

Wow what a great result for Luxembourg!

 

Sinani was MotM with an 8.0 rating on WhoScored.

 

Final stats, after post-match corrections, has given MoM to Danel's strike partner, Rodrigues (7.9 to Danel's 7.8).
The match is an interesting case where Whoscored's rating system appears out of kilter with the on-pitch actuality. Turkey comprehensively outplayed Luxembourg on virtually every measure, yet the overall ratings were 6.54/6.66 in Luxembourg's favour. Presumably the explanation is the weighting of the two individual errors by the Turkey back line which led to 2 of Luxembourg's goals (bit like our 3:2 win against Man City).

 

Which one?!

But joking aside you must mean the 2019 win - the only issue with that is if you looked at the stats at the point we went 2-0 or 3-1 up in that match, I am absolutely certain they would have looked much more balanced other than perhaps possession because the fact was we did actually dominate attacking chances. After 3-1 it became a siege so naturally the shots on goal, possession even more so etc become skewed to the side chasing goals.

By contrast for most of this 3-3, the teams were drawing.

It’s why I think statistics are deeply misleading, especially when the “weaker on paper” team goes ahead early in a match and stays ahead.

 

Much as I like to see a minnow beat a big team, my interest was more in Sinani's performance. Much as I liked Farke, I felt he favoured technically gifted players over more direct attacking players. When Sinani first went out on loan, Farke said that a player from the Luxembourg league would not fit into his plans for the season. When he went on loan to Huddersfield it was much the same and we struggled for goals and assists while Danel scored 7 for the Terriers.

Smith has shifted the priority to potential for goals and assists rather than technical skills. We have yet to see how that will play out for the rest of the season, but so far it is yielding results in spite of the injury problems we've had. Sinani deserves the chances Smith has given him and I hope he makes the most of it. So far he has 2 goals and 3 assists in 5 starts and four sub cameos.

 

Good Job Huddersfield didn't get promoted or they would have bought him

 

Two Josh Sargent quotes from a piece in The Athletic today re. resurrection of his USMNT hopes:
“I wanted to be playing striker, so when I got that opportunity [following Pukki's injury], I knew I had to take it,” Sargent said. “(Before that first game), I’m just thinking, do I still have my touch? I don’t know. I haven’t played there in a while. So it felt amazing to score in that first game that I got the chance and then it started just coming back to me, the goal scoring touch.”
“I haven’t ever really had a season like this in terms of getting a lot of scoring chances, getting minutes at striker like I have this season so far,” he said. “My confidence is at an all-time high.”

 

I'm sure if the USA coach gives him minutes today he won't mind where he plays

 

It's at 9 that the US is short of options. Minutes anywhere are better than no minutes, but I think Josh will be disappointed if he doesn't get a chance to show what he can do in that role.

 

What's at 9 ?

 

Sargent is playing now and they are trailing Japan 1-0

http://www.hesgoal.com/news/Japan vs USA.html

 

Sargent subbed at HT. In the first half, USA had 7 shots, 4 on target. In the second half without Josh they had 2 shots, none on target. First round to Josh I guess.

 

Wrong way round Rick. Josh was on for the second half .........