That is contrary to what Connor Southwell was reporting this week. He also suggested that if Hayden couldn't get fit he could be sent back in January and that the club had already considered other targets
Tonight's games make the draw with Reading look a bit better. Burnley drew 1-1 with Stoke at home after having led for most of the game and I thought Watford's game against Swansea was going to be the same, but Swansea added a second goal in injury time to win 1-2. Russ Martin must be well pleased with that!
Yes, we've lost no ground of any of what seem to be our main contenders for an automatic slot and gained ground on a couple of them.
West Bromwich Albion have parted company with manager Steve Bruce after eight months in charge. The 61-year-old ex-Manchester United defender left following the Baggies' home draw with Luton Town on Saturday. That kept them in the Championship relegation zone, in 22nd, their lowest league position in more than 20 years.
Just saw a headline "Todd secures win for Norwich City women". Now, I know he has long hair but..........
Excellent piece from MFW https://norwichcity.myfootballwrite...rt-an-approach-that-we-dont-fully-understand/
I read that but am less convinced by it. Looking at the larger picture, our best chance is to turn around the present situation. Neither Webber or Smith are going anywhere soon, IMO, but both need to start accepting responsibility for what is currently going wrong. Smith did so in the presser today: "I understand the frustrations. I'm frustrated, we want to be playing great football and creating 15/16 chances every game but the reality is we're not doing that at the moment. The players are on board. We have to move forward as a football club, learning to win, learning to play the right way, and we certainly will." Having said that, he has to make it happen on the pitch. We hear very little from Webber though, except there won't be any new players in January unless players leave. Sacking Smith now would cut deeply into our summer budget as well, making us even less competitive should we be promoted. A convincing win tomorrow would improve the situation going into the crucial match against QPR. With players returning from injury and suspension, the pressure is truly on and it needs both Smith and the players to step up big time tomorrow and the four games before the World Cup break.
MFW "How can you unconditionally support an approach that you don’t fully understand?" Why do fans feel entitled to know everything that the club is doing or planning ? In any other business the last thing you would do is tell your employees and customers all you plans or activities. Of course if you're trying to break the mould there's going to be bumps along the road. Fans of most clubs in the championship would happily swap our fans experience over the last 3 or 4 years for their's. Having said that I do feel the club has significantly lost it's way, and for me the sacking of Farke was systematic of this, but in truth the catalyst for the loss of belief and the birth of many of our current problems, was when we sacrificed our playing philosophy on the altar of pragmatism.
You and I often disagree, but I'm fully with you on the move to pragmatism. We don't do it well, so we may as well take a more expansive and risky approach. It's much better on the eye, too. At the moment we look scared of our own shadows.
please log in to view this image As long as this meeting isn't another attempt to blame fans, but is a constructive attempt to improve the atmosphere, I think this is a good move by the club.
I don't accept that the playing philosophy has changed. Farkeball was simply one implementation of the philosophy, very successful -- up to a point. But even Daniel Farke eventually accepted that we didn't have the quality of player to compete in the EPL playing that way. Does anyone really believe that the club's playing philosophy was abandoned when looking for a coach to replace Daniel Farke? There are many ways of successfully playing entertaining, attacking, possession-based, football, and anyone who bothers to research Dean Smith's managerial record knows that his teams are regularly praised for delivering precisely that -- entertaining, attacking, possession-based football.
I've listened to the interview again and I don't think Richens "blamed" the fans for anything. He simply made the point that there are occasions when the crowd can help the players and that that help is often not forthcoming.
He may have been 'regularly praised' in the past for his style of play, but the past is the past. It's what he has done in his year with us that is relevant. And that has been anything but 'entertaining, attacking, possession-based football'. It has been shapeless and clueless, without any discernible pattern, and reliant on bits of individual skill to make up for the lack of an overall vision. We are politely calling it pragmatism but it looks more like hoping something turns up eventually.
Ok, but are you really saying we have the same playing philosophy now, as we had the last time we were in the championship. If our playing philosophy hasn't changed why did we need to replace Farke? Is Farke's and Smith's playing philosophy the same, I doubt neither Farke nor Smith would agree.