I disagree 2035/36 should be a good season .Can anyone join in the straw grasping? I think our best chance of EPL survival will most likely be in 2024/2025
Rashica was much better in the last games he played before he was injured. He's back in training now and has the ability to get behind defences. Placheta has been much better and if he can make his pace count he could make a difference. The cup game should give Tzolis and Sargent a chance to develop further, especially if they can have the impact they had against Bournemouth when they scored two goals apiece.I never cared for playing it out from the back, either, especially in the PL. That leaves hitting on the break or working the ball up the pitch. We might agree on this: Norwich doesn't have Premier League speed nor technical ability. Other than Normann, there's no one I get excited about when they have the ball.
Can anyone join in the straw grasping? I think our best chance of EPL survival will most likely be in 2024/2025
Sell Aarons & Cantwell and try and buy one of those players that other teams have that put the ball in the net .
Pukki is past it Sargent and Idah are still learning
In the context of sell a couple of players to buy another person that may match his 3 goals or better.I think the Pukki comment is unfair, Duncan. He's scored five goals this season in a truly awful team. OK, two of those were penalties, but how many 'good chances' has he had? 10, at the very most? One in two is not a bad stat for a lower Prem striker. (And I wouldn't call the volley against Newcastle a 'good chance'.)
For me, the problem going forward is the midfield, which totally lacks any creativity, having lost our three most creative players. Buendia, of course, but also, to a lesser extent, Vrançic and Cantwell. They were the only players we had who had the vision to spot a killer pass and the technical ability to make it. I suspect Webber and Farke thought Gilmour would be able to replace them, but he just doesn't seem up to it at this point in his career. And it's not fair to expect McLean to suddenly be able to do it because that's not his skill set.
Yes, he may not quite be the Pukki of 18/19, but he's still a damn sight better than anyone else we have.
But I doubt if you'd be thrilled either if we were still trying to play out from the back against these EPL teams whose strategy is to press high and win back possession in the opposition third! Dean Smith's teams play that style of football (press high, win the ball back high). Before Covid and the latest injuries struck, you could see the adjustment being made. The level of disruption and congestion of holiday fixtures has temporarily derailed the process.