Wow! Who saw that coming?
Even MFW’s Mr Positive, Stewart Lewis, felt unable to predict a City win – instead going for a 1-1 – but should still be awarded a bonus point for being the only one in our prediction league to not foresee a Boro win (apart from Siri, who went 4-3 City).
If there were ever any doubt that we don’t know what the hell we’re talking about…
But there it was, a performance that finally struck that right balance between grit and composure, and which saw City deservedly run out winners against a team who began the day in second, who were bursting full of confidence and who hadn’t conceded a goal since opening day.
Yet, at 2:55 it looked for all the world a mismatch. Not only did the announcing of Boro’s team throw up a heady mix of Championship quality matched with the odd international and Premier League veteran; they were also bloody huge. I mean massive.
If it was a boxing match, the two opponents wouldn’t have been allowed even near the same ring. Think Sly Stallone as Rocky gazing upwards at Apollo Creed before the opening bell. That.
Except on this occasion, as well as bobbing and weaving to avoid the barrage of lumbering right hooks and calling for “Adriannn”, Sly got the jab going, even danced a bit, and when the opportunity arrived, landed the killer blow.
Okay, so a pretty $hit analogy but, hopefully, you get the gist. They were enormous. We weren’t. But thankfully this is football and not rugby (or boxing).
A team-sheet that didn’t include the names Ben Godfrey, Tom Trybull and Jordan Rhodes was, I understand, met with some social media derision – no surprise there – but they were big calls that on this occasion Daniel Farke got right.
If anyone had taken a second to stop and think rather than tweet, there was at least a logic to the inclusion of Christoph Zimmermann and Marco Stiepermann. Both are big in stature and on a day when the bombardment was going to be largely from set pieces and mainly aerial, the extra inches of Zimmo were always going to be invaluable.
Ditto the height and bulk of Stiepermann compared to the slighter figure of Trybull, plus the fact that by opting for the extra mobility of an in-form Teemu Pukki up top, the former’s natural tendency to get in advanced areas offered support closer to our flying Finn. It also enabled Mo Leitner to slot in alongside Alex Tettey again as ‘quarterback’.
And it worked. It absolutely worked. Maybe along the way, some lessons have been learned.
For me, in my own little bubble as always, I likened the challenge to that posed here at the back end of last season by Warnock’s Cardiff. We got beat up that afternoon and lost 2-0. Hence why I was so fearful pre-match yesterday.
I also got the heebie-jeebies midway through the first half, when an intense spell of City pressure produced next to nothing to bother Darren Randolph and brought back shades of that good 20 minutes against Leeds and that excellent opening half-an-hour against West Brom.
But I needn’t have stressed. Yesterday was different. For the first time this season – arguably for the first time in Farke’s tenure – it was a performance that spanned the full 96 and proved that if (still a big if) this squad can find a way to sustain the intensity and not concede daft goals it does have enough in its locker to be competitive in this league.
There were, naturally, lots of good performances yesterday – a rare one in fact where there was barely a weak link – but for us to be better these have to become the norm. Mo Leitner, who after some deserved brickbats of late was sublime yesterday, needs to produce this level so regularly we come to expect it.
Stiepermann – another to have by far his best game in a yellow shirt – needs to defy those who saw yesterday as just a one-off afternoon where everything just happened to click for him. Again, displays like that need to be seen by us as unremarkable – just the norm.
We’re not blessed with a squad so accomplished it can win games by cruising or at a canter. They need to be on it, and on it from start to finish – in fact, the system demands it. Others can soak up pressure, keep their shape and hit opponents on the counter-attack, but Farke wants us to dominate possession and be the ones always asking the questions.
Yesterday they asked the questions and found the answer.
Both full-backs were very good, even if Jamal Lewis did find himself a tad exposed early on, and to think that this was only Max Aaron’s second Championship start is unbelievable. In the same way Jamal took his chance and looked as if he’d already played 100 games, Max is now doing precisely the same, with his knack of joining in in the final third the key element in Pukki’s winner.
Long may it continue, and with one massive hat-tip to the Academy.
Zimmermann and Timm Klose collectively did a fine job to quell the expected threat of Assombalonga and also deal with the aerial threat from set pieces and Ryan Shotton’s Exocet long throws; Klose’s Lazarus moment proving 1) that miracles do happen and 2) it was destined to be our day.
The midfield too functioned just as Team Farke had dreamt it on Friday night, with Alex Tettey back at his obdurate and energetic best and Mo pullings the strings NFL-style as we know he can. An interesting stat that emerged on Twitter last night (via @NCFCnumbers) was that Leitner completed 27 more passes (94) than Middlesbrough’s three starting centre midfielders (Besic, Clayton, Howson). Enough said.
In the wide areas, Emi Buendia and Onel Hernandez were creative and energetic and tricky – all of the things you want from your wide men – with the little Argentinian intelligently drifting infield to get on the ball when the opportunity presented itself. Neither shied away either from the physical battle and both played their part in a successful, collective high press that regularly had Pulis’ giants floundering.
And then there was Marco. Good ol’ Marco.
I’ve rarely seen him play in midfield – which was the position we were told was his best when he arrived – but yesterday he ticked most of the attacking midfielder boxes while providing a physical presence that more than played its part in City at the very least matching Boro in the battle of muscle. He may not become a regular starter but he proved yesterday that Farke’s continued faith in him is indeed justified.
Well played fella.
Pukki did, of course, what Pukki does. He scored a goal. He hadn’t had a great afternoon – he suffered from the same level of isolation that has befallen Jordan Rhodes of late – but he ran the channels, he closed down and when his chance arrived he took it. Who gives a stuff if it took a deflection. He earned it.
And it would be remiss not to close without a mention for one whose City career has, to put it mildly, got off to an ordinary start. But yesterday was the Tim Krul of 2014 who came off the bench in the 120th minute to help his country win a World Cup penalty shoot. The Tim Krul who was adored at St James’ Park. The one who was rated as one of the best.
His two crucial saves were pivotal to the win, but so too the air of calmness, the handling and the collecting of crosses at vital moments. And so too the professionalism to help wind the clock down in those nerve-jangling final minutes and how he engaged and orchestrated the River End when noise and fervour were needed.
Hopefully he, along with the others who enjoyed their best afternoon at the club, will use this as a springboard to push on.
Yet, let’s not too carried away. It was a good win but it was still only a win. Still only worth three points and we’re still comfortably in the bottom half of the table. Two away games in the space of six days now await – Reading and QPR – and now’s the time to prove that we can churn out these good performances against all types of opponent on a consistent basis.
It’s also a chance for Farke to show us that he’s now getting used to picking the right horses for the right courses.
A big week awaits.
Good article Gary and massive win. I know no-one predicted the result, but who would also have predicted on seeing the line-up that each round peg would slot so comfortably into a round hole, again something that has been comparatively rare during Farke’s tenure. Leitner looking so much better and more effective lying deeper alongside Tettey, and Stiepermann, of all people, playing so effectively the #10 role. Max Aarons too, wow, and in fact all the flankers.
But for me perhaps the most telling thing, is that after approximately 60 games in charge, including the Cup games, is the set up and style of play that Farke is really looking for, and has been aiming for all along? Of course, the answer to this will only be known if this kind of performance is replicated now much more frequently, but what City did yesterday was much more akin to the style of play employed by both Fulham and Huddersfield in their promotion campaigns – slick, possession based, passing football, with the onus on transforming from defence to attack at pace.
I will mention again, of the players on the pitch yesterday, only Tettey and Klose preceded Farke’s arrival. This is still a very young team, in terms of its playing together, especially with the further changes in the squad this season. Thus to see it starting to gel now and to show something like the real promise these players and team can offer does seem like this is the style of play Farke is aiming for on a more consistent basis, rather than just a once off. Time will tell, but just as things improved dramatically after the first international break last year, this year perhaps its an indicator that finally things are starting to gel across the squad and it’s playing style.
Good read as always. The biggest crime will be not to build on this, it ill little if we revert to old habits this next week. Still I am seeing it for what it is. A good performance, 3 points giving the fans a feast, better than the scraps.
The longer Boro carry on at the top the bigger their arrogance, will become, look out for their fan, on the Pink Un . ranting how he hates Norwich, almost crying in his tea, Conceeded a paltry amount of goal and their first defeat, and he is still crying. He should have had some of what we have had served up. Jeez
What a belligerent boob that young Boro fan. I hope he’s eaten his humble pie by now
The best performance from City since Aston Villa last year.
I think the biggest factor was Aarons at right back. Pinto and Marshall are not full backs they are ball watchers which resulted in us shipping goals down the right hand side.
Aaron’s looks an exceptional player and together with Lewis provide security for the two centre backs, hence a good team defensive display in the two league games he has played in. I just hope they are not sold in January.
Pleased that Krul started to show signs of the keeper we remember at Newcastle.
Funnily enough I thought the goal scorer was our weakest on field player.
Agree with all of that.
In the first half Pukki seemed a yard off the pace, but maybe he was getting used to his different role.
That said if he carries on scoring I won’t care one jot!
“For the first time this season – arguably for the first time in Farke’s tenure – it was a performance that spanned the full 96 and proved that if (still a big if) this squad can find a way to sustain the intensity and not concede daft goals it does have enough in its locker to be competitive in this league.”
That quote sums it up for me. We can all see what Farke is trying to do. He just needs to find a way of getting the team to do it for 90 minutes on a consistent basis.
On Friday I feared we would lose 3-0 but I had more hope when I saw the teamsheet, although I then thought we might get a draw.
Playing Zimmermann and Stiepermann suggests that, at last, DF is coming to understand the physicality you need in this division-I hope he understands that this is necessary in all Championship games, not just against the Monsters of Middlesbrough. Last season Wolves walked the league playing beautiful football when they had the ball but were pretty brutal in ensuring the opposition didn’t get to build momentum when not in possession..
The next couple of games gives us a chance to say that we have had a decent start to the season….fingers crossed.
The Boro fan in meltdown was a joy to behold.
I think the team selection fitted the match, I like Rhodes, I like Pukki and I like the way the 3 attacking midfielders look when they have space. Someone had to make way and it was Rhodes who will probably look to be used more when we play teams who sit back like Burton and Bolton last year. Pukki has scored 6 this year, all home goals, all with his feet and all inside the penalty area and out of the 6 yard box. Very useful skills in certain matches but football is a squad game so be prepared for more surprises. I was glad to see Leitner further forward and I think that gave Buendia more space. I half expected a 3 man back line with Aarons and Lewis playing as wing backs but what we played worked. Regarding predictions I rarely predict a win. If my heart says a 5-0 win and my head says 3-0 my mouth might say a 2-1 win. As the only Norwich fan in my prediction league I did comment to the Ipswich fans that we could play better than we did against them but we were on a low from the Leeds match. I predicted a 2-1 defeat with a Pukki goal giving us the lead but we held our lead to prove me wrong. I would have been happy with a point but I did say I was hoping for 7 out of 9 from the next 3 matches
You always read the game so well, Gary.
Your point about City being really ‘on it’ is spot on. Mo was really snapping into tackles rather than waiting for Tettey to do it; Steiperman was the missing link, causing all kinds of problems between Boro’s defence and midfield. Can’t help feeling we’ve needed a big athletic attacking centre midfielder to complement all the pretty stuff we insist on, and yesterday he was the man.
Apollo Creed is just a few inches taller than Rocky. He really gazes up at Drago & Thunderlips, but I take your point.
There were a lot of moans on Twitter about Stiepermann but anyone who saw his second half display at Cardiff probably weren’t surprised or concerned to see him start. It’s great he took his chance.
I wasn’t surprised that we won, but equally I wouldn’t be surprised to lose midweek. The ability to play to a high standard on a more regular basis is obviously key.
Good point Dave. Dragon was indeed my intended ‘opponent’. My bad. Apologies ?
Gary: you rightly refer to my habit of seeing bright spots when others are more doubtful.
I have a less-observed habit when people are feeling upbeat, which I’ll repeat today: we shouldn’t and mustn’t get carried away with one good performance. You’re spot on: today feels sweet, but it only counts if we can produce it more regularly.
Before the game yesterday, I said I’d be happy with a point, and ecstatic with three, but expected to get none. I am ecstatic!!
Farke’ steam selection was outstanding. Leitner showed just what he is capable of, though in the last 10 minutes he was much less influential, mainly due, I think, to Pulis having finally woken up to Mo’s control of the game and putting on substitutes who swamped the midfield.
Tim Krul’s dominance of his area was crucial, and he didn’t show any signs of the indecision or nervousness which he has in earlier games.
The two full backs were excellent, both in defending and getting forward, the the central defenders were solid. The midfield was disciplined, the wide players did everything expected of them, and Pukki did what was necessary, deflection not withstanding.
I couldn’t pick a man of the match. Long may it continue that way.
(Did I say I was ecstatic?)
Really good read Gary as always and it makes a pleasant change to reading about a deserved victory. !
I have to admit I wasn’t overly confident prior to kick off of facing a well drilled physical tony pulis side particularly without our captain Hanley but I couldn’t have been more wrong.I thought Zimmermann was an excellent replacement alongside the equally impressive klose and kept assombalonga in check all afternoon and the back 4 was protected by the brilliant tettey.Mo leitner had his best game in city shirt,always wanting the ball and making us tick and with more creative players in the side allowing him to do what he does best dictating play and i strongly believe there is a player in there however he needs to do it on a more consistent basis.Add to the mix a more confident krul,buendia a creative spark and pukki a goal threat the signs are good and really pleasing for me was to see the young lads playing at full back who looked like established players which is testament to our academy.
Let’s hope we are this buoyant come Thursday morning.
OTBC
Hi Gary
Strange report from Pulis one says city were deserved winners that they were the better team on the day which eceryone has agreed with, then he saus just before city scored they should have gad a penalty nowhere have I read that.
I agree with his opinion that the Ref has got everyone confused giving Klose a second yellow and showing him the Red card, but changing his mind for an offside that had gone before I was under the impression that cards can’t be resinded during the game but I suppose someone will put me right.
Onwards and upwards a good win in the next game will help boost confidence and get a few harpendeners of doom and gloom to have a rethink and get the calls for Team Farke to go to stop for a while.
Hi Gary
Just like to put out there incase no one has heard the sad news of an Ipswich Great Kevin Beattie has died today at the young age of 64.
He had a short career during the time under Bobby Robson but injuries end it for him.
Condolence to Ipswich and his family from a city supporter.
Well done Gary and yet again it seems that we are singing fron the same hymn sheet when assessing City’s endeavours. However I would like to make a point some are saying that we shouldn’t get carried away with one good performance so correct me if I’m wrong and albeit in the cup but did we not put in a more than credible performance to win in Cardiff. Sandwiched in between there was a good point at Ipswich and now the best performance under Farke to beat Middlesbrough. I feel that we have been building to this display over the past few weeks and without wishing to be over confident I think we are now steering up the road in the right direction,yes there undoubtedly will be some twists and turns ahead but i do think Mr Farke is on the right road. Early season form was bound to be effected by the loss of Maddison and Murphy and games and points lost were due to individual errors,to give Leeds those two goals as we did was always going to make it a to bigger mountain to climb especially with the confidence they were displaying but the first 20 minutes was full of promise.
I therefore urge all to maintain that half full glass mentality,where this takes us I do not know mid table top six who knows but so much in this team to admire as it grows and matures. Cheers everybody
Did not watch or listen to the game but looked at the stats online and thought Wow
Possession 62%
Goal attempts 16 to their 8
Shots on goal 6 to their 2
Blocked shots 5 to their 1
Goalkeeper saves 2 to their 5
And most impressively
Total passes 553 v 336
And
Passes completed 463 v 228
Enough said farke we want you to succeed
Just to let readers know Cities next match V Reading will be on the Sky Red button so enjoy