Well we really should have won that comfortably, in the first half and then the stonewall penalty in the second. The ref had a bit of a shocker. Gnonto was very good apart from the blatant dive. And a point against this Leeds team is not too bad and we are clearly improving as a team which is important
I’d have taken a point at the start of the night as I wasn’t expecting anything tonight. A decent performance as well I feel, fast paced, some good passing at times, fantastic energy and desire. We didn’t look like pushovers
Special mentions for Sainz, Nunez and Slimane, they looked brilliant tonight. As did Fisher, Cordoba and Duffy as well. Particularly Fisher, at his age, playing Right back and left back - he stood up to the challenge well
"The 23-year-old was able to walk unaided to the touchline, and did an impromptu drill to test his right knee, before he departed down the tunnel at the break. But head coach Johannes Hoff Thorup confirmed afterwards Cordoba was unable to continue: “He felt some knee pain, in the final moments of the first half so we tried to get it going again. But could not really after the half-time team talk. So it was an easy, easy decision for me to take. We’ll have to look at him tomorrow morning (Wednesday) to see. We need to see the reaction on him, the knee, everything. Most likely a scan tomorrow and then we have some answers.” https://www.pinkun.com/sport/interviews/24623282.norwich-city-1-1-leeds-thorup-cordoba-injury-fear/ Let's hope it isn't serious, especially with 6 other players injured and this depressing news about Gibbs: "Not really positive. I think we are talking about a return to play in 10 weeks' time. It was, unfortunately, what we hoped it wouldn't be," City's boss said on the 21-year-old. It's very unfortunate for him and for us. Even though he hasn't been a regular starter. He is a good player and has the capability physically to cover a lot of ground. That is how it is and we have to support him in the best way that we can." And this about Hernandez's hamstring injury: "It is the same. We are talking about 10 weeks' time or something like that. It didn't seem that serious in the game, and we thought we'd go with low risk after seven minutes on the pitch. We could see he was running without full power and went with what we thought was low risk, but now it seems it was very important that we took that decision because it's a longer one for him."
It's been a long time coming, but at last someone other than BK and JHT has put an appreciative spotlight on Ante Crnac's intelligence and quality (the knowledgeable Dean Ashton, in his remarks alongside Chris Goreham in Radio Norfolk's audio coverage of the match). If anybody is still puzzled by the signing of this undemonstrative 20-year old foreign product of clubs and leagues most of us have never heard of, listen to Ashton's comments on Crnac's play leading up to the award of our penalty (Full 90 replay, min 12.09 onwards), and Crnac's intelligent reading of Melier's steepling clearance and subsequent pass to release Josh Sargent in the move leading to Sainz's curling shot in first half added time (Full 90 replay, min 48.55 onwards).
The takedown and pass was excellent but Crnac is still a work in progress as Ashdown emphasises here, where he compares him to a young puppy: "He reminds me a bit of a young puppy as in he will do something that is so lovely and just superb and then just turn around and hit their head on the door. There is a player there though." Idah was similar when he joined, awkward and gangly at times then suddenly effective in patches, like that early hat trick in the cup. Crnac will progress, but how long will it take and will it ever justify the £8.5m we paid for him? I hope so, but we'll have to wait and see. With Barnes, Fassnacht, Hernandez and Gibbs all injured, Crnac will certainly get the playing time and hopefully progress to be the player we need. https://insidefutbol.com/2024/10/02...-says-ex-canary-in-strange-comparison/662646/
Crnac being a work in progress is no reason to turn a blind eye to the quality he already exudes and the good things he already contributes. And there's already plenty of evidence of progress, if one cares to look for it. From the humiliation of his half-time substitution against Coventry, and being benched next match against Swansea, he has so impressed the coaching team as to claim the wide right position for himself in what is generally acknowledged to be the best-balanced version of Thorup's team. He's coming along nicely, and isn't even playing in his favoured position (much like the "hopeless, is he even a footballer" Sargent when Pukki was a shoe in at CF).
