Match Day Thread Playoff Semi-final 1 | Norwich v Leeds | Carrow Road | Sun 12:00

Maybe but I think it was obvious Sainz had something all along. Van Hooijdonk doesn’t have time on his side, Elland Road could be his last game at the club or Wembley

 

If I take off my yellow and green glasses I feel that we were really poor today. Leeds looked far more likely to score all game and I really cannot see us getting anything on Thurs. Here's hoping that I am wrong.

 

From what I hear both from Norwich and Brighton sources it was bound to happen sooner or later.

 

To be honest, I never felt like either teams were going to score. Usually I'd be biting my nails, but this game felt uneventful.

I could maybe see this going to penalties in the 2nd leg.

 

The old “xG” begs to differ!

 

I trust my own eyes more than xG whatever that might be. I cannot remember one instance where we looked like scoring and whilst Leeds were not a lot better it would not have been a surprise if the ref had awarded them a penalty and only a marginal offside resulted them having a goal disallowed following a disgraceful defensive cock up.

 

I don’t disagree regarding xG, but if I recall correctly, Sargent had a decent header where he was pushed in the air - not something we would get a penalty, but you can be damn sure if it had been a “big” premier league club VAR would probably have awarded one.

Then we also had a decent line break from Sargent, where he was pulled back, the break from ?Sainz where he was clean through but couldn’t get the ball under control and Sara’s left peg caught a square ball cleanly, but it was just behind him and he could wrap his foot around it enough to get it on target.

So we had the greater share of half chances, I’d say.

 

You say "Leeds were not a lot better" and yet in your 1st post you said that "Leeds looked far more likely to score " (which is simply not true)
I think you are allowing your disdain for Mr Wagner to cloud your judgement. Leeds were marginally the better team but its all to play for on Thursday and it is far too early to write us off. Are you sure you were wearing Yellow and green glasses because I get the impression it is more important for you to be proved right about Wagner, who you recently refered to as a "joke of manager "

 

Can't see a contradiction. In my view we never looked like scoring whereas Leeds looked like they were going to get a penalty and also had the ball in the net which was only disallowed thanks to an eagle-eyed linesman who spotted an offside which few other people spotted. We all are entitled to our opinions on players and Managers but they are only opinions and I couldn't care less whether people agree with me or not and it is nonsense to suggest that I want things to go wrong and cause harm to the Club that I have supported for over 70 years just so I can say ' I told you so' . My views on Wagner are quite clear. With his record I could not understand why he was appointed in the first place and the performances since he has been here have, in my opinion, not been good enough. I cannot recall any game where we have completely outplayed our opponents and when a lot of experts suggest that we have one of the best squads in the Division I give him no credit for managing to scrape into the playoffs at the end of a season filled with disappointing performances. Have we forgotten the games where people were going home in their hundreds at half-time? I cannot recall that happening under Farke or any other Manager since the 1960's when it happened regularly.

 

There was plenty of disillusionment around in Farke's first season when we finished 14th. This is Wagner's first full season and we finished in the playoffs, which was the target. People exaggerate the value of our squad which is not hugely different from the majority of teams and certainly well below the 3 relegated teams, including Leeds.

 

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"I couldn't care less whether people agree with me or not" .............. of course you don't


Wagner got Huddersfield promoted and kept them up. Perhaps that had something to do with him landing the job at Norwich.!! He certainly had far better credentials than Dean Clueless Smith

 

I am sure you will agree Rick that there is a lot of difference between a crowd being a bit disillusioned and hundreds of them walking out at half time. I also find the other stats completely misleading. Ipswich, who got automatic promotion, do not appear in the top 13 because such stats do not consider other factors such as fitness, organisation and coaching. On top of that a player is worth what a Club is prepared to sell him for and what the buying Club are prepared to pay. In my opinion if a Premiership Club came in for Sargent,Rowe, Gunn Sara or Nunez City would expect to get at least £15m for any of them and the buying Club would expect to pay that. That's £75m of the £68m gone!! As I said people have their own assessments of players and Managers and Wagner is no different. I do not think it was a good appointment in the first place, nor do I think he has done a very good job since he has been here and, more importantly, I do not I think he can take the Club forward in the tight financial restrictions we now face. Others may disagree but I am entitled to my opinion even if it is a minority view.

 

Or you could say the David Wagner who joined Schalke and got them relegated within a year or the David Wagner who took over Young Boys, the reigning Champions and biggest Club in Switzerland, and was sacked with.in the first season with the Club 15 points adrift of the leaders or you could say the Dean Smith who got Villa promoted, kept them up developing several young players including Grealish who was sold for £100m. You pays your money and takes your choice

 

Of course you are entitled to your opinion. Just like I'm entitled to my opinion that the man in the moon is real, doesn't make me right though.

Surely part of the point of a forum like this is to discuss differing opinions. Most people like to support their opinions with evidence rather than prejudices and bias.

The idea that any manager, no matter how good or bad they are, is solely responsible for what happens on the pitch is for the birds. There are 1,000's of factors outside a mangers control that impacts on how a team performs in a game / over the season. For me Wagner's performance this season, bearing in mind all the factors outside his control i.e. injuries, justifies him being retained for another season irrespective of what division we play in. However I was one of the few that thought sacking Farke was a mistake. I'm of the view that it takes time to develop high performing teams and changing managers for no good reason, just because so called fans stamp their feet when things don't go well, is counter productive. That doesn't mean Wagner gets a free ride next season, but equally that doesn't mean if he makes mistakes the first reaction should be to sack him. Mistakes are part of the learning process and essential to development. Same goes for players.

 

I also agree that you're entitled to your opinion 1950, as are the hundreds who left at halftime. There were also another 25,000 fans that didn't walk out. There were many who were frustrated and worried when we were facing the possibility of relegation, but the return of Barnes, then Sainz and finally Sargent after 20 games out gave Wagner and the club the means to fight their way into the playoffs. That was an incredible feat whether you like Wagner or not.

It could also be argued that the value of Sargent, Sara and Rowe has risen dramatically because they have been well coached, which is not something that would have happened under Smith and Shakespeare, IMO. Wagner has earned another year, but he also deserves more support than he got from Knapper in the January window. Attanasio had stated that there was money available for strengthening the squad in January - instead we had 3 players out and van Hooijdonk in. That has hardly strengthened Wagner's options.

 

It is my belief that S&S over coached Nunez after his arrival. In the first half dozen games or so he was excellent, but after that he drifted into the background of games, if he played at all. He is now, it would appear, playing a game more natural to his abilities and the team is benefiting from this.

 

A bit harsh my friend but never mind. I don't quite see how somebody suggesting that a Manager is not capable of taking the Club forward is as silly as saying that the man in the moon is real but again never mind. I thought I had put forward evidence but perhaps I need to try again
a) His Managerial record is mixed to say the least.
b) Sport is supposed to be an entertainment but this has been in short supply since Wagner took over. Hundreds of people walking out at half time shows that.
c) He seems to operate on one system and has no plan B when needed
d) Illogical substitutions both on players and timings.
e) We never seem to dominate a game even against lesser Teams
f) His style generates little enthusiasm. Ask most supporters to name the highlight of the season and they will probably quote the Ipswich game which, in reality, was a game where we grabbed a goal and withstood a battering. Ask a Plymouth supporter, for example, the same question and they will fondly recall the 6-2 victory over us. Where was our high scoring entertaining victory during the season?
g) At times our defence has not seemed to know who they were supposed to be marking or who was supposed to be going for the ball. Look at the shambles leading to the offside goal on Sunday. Overall the team do not seem to be well coached.
h) I fully accept that there are factors outside the control of the Coach but equally a good coach can get an average squad to perform well - as with Ipswich and us under Lambert - and a poor coach can make a good squad look average and I do feel that our squad, individually, are better than people give them credit for.
I do in fact agree with you about Farke and on top of that I normally maintain that Managers are not given enough time but in this case - and yet again I say in my opinion - it is clear to me that he cannot take this Club forward in the financially challenging times that lie ahead.

 

I seem to have lit the blue touchpaper so time to retire!!

 

Smith got Villa promoted largely due to Grealish. How much credit goes to Smith for developing him as a player, is open to debate. But I do know when he didn't play Villa were at best an average side. Villa spent just over 144 million after getting promoted and just managed to avoid relegation....hardly what I would call a great managerial feat. Spent another shed load of money during the 2nd season in the Premiership without really progressing.Wagner managed to keep Huddersfield up on a shoestring budget and I seem to recall that there mitigating circumstances for one of his " failures" in Switzerland, but I have not investigated any further . Best of luck in your retirement.

 

I’ve not seen it mentioned on here but a Leeds fan was injured leaving the game at the weekend, reports of him being punched and cut with either a can/knife. 2 people arrested at the scene.

Completely unwelcome and stupid behaviour and not what is expected from our fans.