The 2018-19 Season

Chris Martin had a similar impact for a short time with us. He then played some good stuff for Derby, but in reality he is a decent championship player at best. He never had the pace to play in the PL. Todd we will have to wait and see. He is certainly gifted and playing in a winning and well organised Championship team he is doing well. But it's early days yet. I don't think he is anywhere near Madisons quality yet? But he has time to up things, this could be where Maddison was when AN ignored him and sent him out on loan. I can't wait to see where Cantwell after 50+ starts will be. I don't think Maddison level but I think at the very least he can be a high quality Champ player, PL for me too early to say.

Bah!

 

An excellent summary of TC’s prospects General. I thought his floated pass for Aarons to score was exceptional and if he can keep doing assists like that ……

 

Two things that bother me about the way we play: 1) Throw-ins and 2) free kicks. A throw-in, especially in the opponent's half, should be an opportunity but so much of the time it looks like an adventure just to get the ball to a teammate. For example, Lewis will throw the ball to someone's feet for them to kick it back to Lewis, or we throw the ball high down the touch-line which makes it something of a 50-50.

The free kicks on Saturday seemed like a waste trying to get up and down over the Miller's high wall. Working a play instead of going for the goal would have been a better option IMO.

 

City actually have a throw in coach who trains that technique to keep possession as others move to take them, so yes it's meant to be like that. I agree about the free kicks, CS.

 

Thanks RER. I didn't know there was a coach for that. I just read about this guy: Thomas Gronnemark at Liverpool.
https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/45405476

It still looks odd to me, but I watch on a stream and don't see the whole field and what all the players are doing.

 

Today's MFW offering -
http://norwichcity.myfootballwriter...lets-enjoy-every-single-second/#comment-32066

 

Not a bad prediction.

 

Quite an interesting insight on our season so far by the Teesside equivalent of the EDP -
A lot is made of the cherished two-points per game path to promotion, of which Norwich are the only side on track after 20 games.
How much credit does Daniel Farke deserve?
"The way Daniel Farke has moulded the team is exactly how he planned when he took charge a season and a half ago. All of his work and his plans are coming to fruition.
"I think to a certain degree their success so far this season has come as a surprise. I'm not saying the fans or anybody connected with the club didn't think they could compete this season but I think anyone who says they expected to be in this position at this stage of the season would be lying. Their consistency has been so impressive. But even at the start of the season they were showing very good signs.
"It's always been clear that there's a plan and a framework. Everyone is aware that there are going to be difficult patches."
https://www.gazettelive.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/lowdown-norwich-city--question-15504370

Edit and this from today’s MFW article -
‘With Elton John banging away on his Joanna in the name of John Lewis Christmas campaign and the shops full of Santas, it seems surreal to be talking about top of the table City. Had we peaked in October and slipped quietly away by now the world would once again make some sense and order would be restored.
‘It defies all logic and conventional wisdom, let alone my own understanding of the game to see us up there where in my opinion we belong, breathing in the rarified air. A club simply cannot sell its guts out, bring in an untried coach from abroad, spend a tiny fraction of the incoming funds on replacements and expect to trouble the top half, let alone the top.
‘Trouble is, as unexpected a bonus as this is, I rather like being at the top of the league and the stress and fractious nerves jangling every time we look like relinquishing the spot are giving me familiar feelings of foreboding on match days. This can’t continue, can it? Whether it does or doesn’t, it sure beats the hell out of last season.’
#sosayallofus
http://norwichcity.myfootballwriter...dy-it-sure-beats-the-hell-out-of-last-season/

PS - I see in just over a month, we’ve gone from being 8/1 for promotion to 10/11.

 

Your panicking now it’s December?

 

That’s a joke btw Dunc - it is an uncannily accurate prediction from you

For me the key line is “Their consistency has been so impressive.”

It’s easy to forget with last season’s disappointing league position, but at times we were superb. So often I thought we deserved more from a game or ran another team ragged. I went to both cup matches and against Arsenal we were the better team for almost the whole match, against Chelsea for the first two-thirds.

As Dunc said in his prediction, it was about getting the team working together. Now they seem to be doing it week in, week out. Football is still a team game, despite the Ronaldos, Messis and co.

 

Duplicate post deleted

 

The NCFC team is working together PERFECTLY and I can't think of any goal this season that hasn't been a 'team goal'.

 

The emphasis on 'team goals' is a good one and at the heart of our current success, as DD suggested in his prediction which was very good. One thing I disagreed about then and still do, is that our players are only 'average'. That might apply to a few, but not to most. SW, DF and the recruitment team have done a great job picking out excellent players who have fallen from favour (eg. Leitner, Trybull, Buendia and Stiepermann), all of whom are proving themselves this season. Good for them, good for us. Add to that two new strikers for little money and the 'fantastic four' youffs who have forced themselves into the reckoning and 3 CBs and a revitalised Tettey who have also shown excellence and we now have a balanced squad blending individual flair into team synergy. Consistency has been the key as well, achieved in spite of injuries as those coming in have fitted seamlessly into the play. When SW came in we all hoped that he could do for us what he did for Huddersfield and now he is.

 

You mentioned consistency -


A picture paints a thousand words and if 36 points from 15 games isn't consistent ......
Especially when the pack has 9 points FEWER!!!!

 

So Sky ‘FM’ has crunched its numbers and come up with how the Championship league table will look as of Jan1st.


Leeds to amass 13 points and us 9 over the next 6 games!!!
I'd be amazed if Stoke are anywhere near 6th, or Swansea 10th.
#sacktheprogrammer

Edit - https://www.edp24.co.uk/sport/norwi...pionship-manager-of-the-month-award-1-5809359
#weredoomed

 

It could be worse, the computer thinks Forest's form will drop off a cliff with a meer 7pts! And look at Blades, undefeated with 14 over 6. Randomly speculative all of it. I know we're gonna win them all for an 18pts haul!.......I mean lose them all of course!

Bah!

 

An INTERESTING 3½ weeks ahead, that's 'for sure'

 

So, we are going to lose one and draw three of the next six games, when we have only drawn four all season. At this time we are managing to turn draws into victory more often than not. We have only lost away from home just the once so far, and the three away games in this sequence, against the B's are very winnable. All three will make an effort to attack which will suit us down to the ground.

 

The bit that made me smile was the only loss was to Bolton at home

It might happen though...

 

I'm still looking for 12 points from those 6 games. We drew at Derby and won at Forest, so home games should not arouse undue concern. West Brom away is the most challenging, but our away form is good.

As for DF's gong, he's defied all predictions so far this season, so let's hope he can defy that hoodoo as well. I liked SW's take on it:

“Daniel was always the person at the top of the list,” said Webber. “If you look at the key objectives for our club we wanted someone who would bring in a style of play that we could build the club on. We needed someone who had a proven track record of developing players. We had a financial hole to fill and we were not going to fill that by selling experienced players, because no one wants to buy them. They want younger players and up-and-coming players. We needed someone who was open minded, in regards to recruitment. Not someone who only wanted to sign players from one league or just have expensive British players. Fundamentally we don’t have the money to buy British experienced players. Daniel ticked all the boxes and we had some deeper criteria around the style of play but those were the key points.”

For years we've needed a progressive manager (or coach) who would focus on development rather than the quick fix. That was SW's focus from the start and he saw that DF was what was needed. How right he was.