To paraphrase Jarvis Cocker, we had to start it somewhere, so it started there… in Burnley.
It wasn’t a rip-snorter of a performance by any stretch of the imagination, but it was resolute and gutsy; two words that have been absent from literally every Norwich City match report or thought piece so far this season.
As ever, when you go to a relegation rival’s patch and depart without three points, we were left with a slight sense of what might have been, and that niggling feeling that three points were there for the taking, but when you start the day point-less, you’re in beggars can’t be choosers territory.
Any away point in the Premier League is a good point. When Sean Dyche has spent Friday night and Saturday morning feeding his troops raw meat, it’s a doubly good point.
And a clean sheet! I’d forgotten there was even such a thing.
It wasn’t perfect of course. When Team Farke analyses the game, those areas that needed improvement before the trip to Turf Moor will still be there, but this time they will be able to identify some things that worked well.
The three at the back, despite many of us doubting its suitability against opponents like Burnley, started to show some encouraging signs, not least because it allows one of the three to join in and make an extra man in midfield when the time is right.
I refer of course to the run by Ozan Kabak in the second half when he slalomed his way past numerous opponents before being tripped by Jay Rodriguez at the 15th attempt just inches from the edge of the Burnley penalty area.
He’d warmed up at Everton seven days earlier with a practice run but this was the real McCoy; one reminiscent of the YouTube showreel many of us drooled over when he was first announced as a City player.
While running 70 yards with the ball, leaving players in your wake along the way, isn’t necessarily a natural by-product of the Farkeball we’ve been used to, it isn’t half exciting to watch. And with excitement having been in pretty short supply so far, let’s not discourage him. In fact, we should now demand at least one forward foray from Mr Kabak per game.
But, more importantly, he was solid, rick-free defensively, and allowed Max Aarons to advance into those forward areas in the way his coach had planned. So too was Dimitris Giannoulis able to contribute in the way the formation demands, and showed why a natural left foot on that side is a better fit for a 3-5-2 and allows the football to flow that much more freely.
In a back four, few can argue that Brandon Williams offers more aggression and bite, and is more capable of defending one-on-one situations, but if you need a wing-back to join in, the Greek international is the preferable option. Until now, he has been made to pay the price for a first-half horror show at the Etihad, but yesterday he played himself into the starting XI for the Brighton game.
And then there’s Mathias Normann. Even on debut, in that disappointing afternoon against Watford, the Norwegian international had enough good moments to demonstrate that there is a top-class player in there, but yesterday he started to really display his quality and knack for picking a pass.
In a central midfield area where control was key to Burnley’s brand of bully-ball, Normann more than held his own alongside Pierre Lees-Melou and Kenny McLean and, for once, we refused to be cowed and overrun. A bout of first-half handbags with (surprise, surprise) Ashley Westwood at its heart, was evidence enough that City were acutely aware of the need to not be intimidated.
And they weren’t.
Dyche and his second-lieutenant Ben Lees had both done their bit to stoke up the locals prior to kick-off, although Lees declaring that “we will get in Norwich’s faces” won the Premier League award of the week for stating the bleedin’ obvious. Do they have another way?
And Dyche was Dyche. Roaring, growling, moaning and seething; no doubt apoplectic that on this occasion Kevin Friend declined his invitation to co-referee the game, although the flame-haired one did his very best.
He truly is the managerial equivalent that bloke in the River End who used to spend 90 minutes yelling at the top of his voice, “GET STUCK IN!”
To be fair, Burnley do get stuck in. And they also cross the ball a lot.
But, for once, City withstood the barrage. James Tarkowski and co were not, for once, able to use their physical dominance to thrash three points out of us. We stood firm, both in the physical and mental sense.
And while it was only a point, it meant a lot.
That bleak run of consecutive Premier League defeats is finally at an end and we can move forward. We’re on the board and we weren’t that team that went along and helped Burnley end their win-less run at home.
It may only be a small step but it’s a step.
And Jarvis was right… it did have to start somewhere.
Thank you Burnley.
Well, that’s certainly going to ease, the tension a notch or two over the international break and at least one half of East Anglia managed to emerge from the long trip to the North West this weekend with a point! OTBC.
Bloody well done lads!!!!!
Just a little more tinkering and we should be grand.
City showed alot more aggression which to be fair was lacking in previous games and it helped a great deal in securing their first point.Normann is without doubt Webbers best new addition,head and shoulders above the rest(Kabak close second).But there has to be a negative and that’s our attack,what Sargent brings to the table I’m not quite sure,although he is quite good at chasing and Harrowing his opponents but he doesnt look like hes going to score that many in the Epl.Then theres Pukki who looks shot of confidence,let’s hope he gets that back v Brighton.All in all an encouraging performance and still plenty of points to play for.
Tony, do you think Sarjent would be better if the 3rd midfielder chosen is more of an attacking threat, provided that such a player is tenacious and behind the ball when out of possession? I think Rupp looked more capable than PLM in a short cameo, and I think there is an argument for the 3rd midfielder perhaps being Cantwell which I’m sure would hugely benefit the front 2. As well as they played yesterday, they looked very impotent.
Well said. My dream now is for many of those likely to be called up for some International duty to have acquired mystery injury or sprain that makes it necessary to stay in Norfolk and to spend time with their team mates. On a more serious note, I hope that the forgotten men (Sorensen, Dowell) as well as the injured Todd Cantwell get game time soo. That said, playing three at the back makes it harder. I hope once we weather the storm we can risk some more attacking formations. Idah amd Sargent make ideal foils in my opinion and if they start getting goals we should see a boost to their confidence and play.
That was certainly a relief Gary. We will need plenty of this resolve over the rest of the season. Just a shame that Normann and Kabak joined us a month too late, but they do look like class players. More threat needed going forward, but we would have taken a point before kick off. I don’t think that Tim Krul is looking that good at the moment, particularly when he leaves his goal-line. Does Farke have it in him to give Gunn a chance?
If you can punch a Burnley player straight in the face in the penalty area that makes it even better. Though Wood should have had a red for that studs up late tackle anyway.
Yeap, when Mike Dean, in charge of VAR yesterday, nailed Ward Prowse, I was left wondering what he saw different in that tackle on Kabak.
It was late, studs showing and dangerous but the Burnley mob did a very good distraction job to keep 11 players on the pitch. We have a lot to learn in that department. It was clearest red card offence of the game.
Mind you, Krul did his best Schumacher (?) impression!
Hardly! Battiston never played again!
Well, what to say….Typical british chaos game, not much sense at all, hard trying and no crying.
Outside Britain there could have been at least 2 red cards. First one was Tarkowski vs Pukki, when Teemu would finally get a scoring chance. Other was Kruls punch tackle which would have caused also penalty. Vydra surely got concussion and might be out longer period and in those kind of cases it can end players careers.
Norwich best and very much only scoring chances were 2 free kicks from good areas. Normanns free kicks were not bad, but not good either. Overall he played good game, but was 2 times close to score own goal and that own goal header one was lucky to not get in. This would have been typical Norwich individual player error.
Burnley was slightly better, so home win or draw would have been fair result so it was fair result. This looked very much like lower league games in England. There is 2 other teams which are also bad, Southampton and Newcastle. Watford possibly also come to relegation mix. Southampton sold Ings and Armstrong is nowhere near his level as goal scorer. Ings surely affects also mentally to Southampton. Newcastle have fantastic Saint-Maximin, but nothing else. All these 4 teams are bad, there is very little positive to say.
Norwich plays now 5-3-2. 5 defenceman, 3 more defensive than attacking midfielders, 1 defensive striker and 1 striker who should get every possible goal scoring chance what Norwich ever gets, but he never gets any scoring chances. Of course he does not get, if he is closer to get any chance opponents will foul him. Your bench does not offer anything, you have no options. Still, Burnley, Southampton and Newcastle does not look like winning any games either. Its almost 100% sure that this season is going to be written new premier league history as lowest points to avoid relegation. It has been said that 40 points is enough, less than 30 points might be enough now or even just above 20. 0-0 is close every time when you play against each other too.
I think they could forfeit either PLM or McLean for Cantwell or Dowell, and Sarjent and Pukki would get more creative chances
Breaking News
WATFORD sack MUNOZ and that has come out of the blue but not really unexpected.
Dyce says that even at home they don’t get stonewall penalties such is life.
Burnley at times play good football but alway mix it up and early yesterday could have been down to 10 men and if that had happens then we would have seen more drama from them than the new Bond film.
Was Krul lucky I have seen it a couple of times and think it was a coming together both went for the ball and no foul.
Now we need to see more of these displays from city and the noise at Carrow Road will be turned up to full volume.
Now we have an unwanted break let’s hope all return fit and ready to battle Brighton.
Onwards and upwards
OTBC
Stay Healthy and Keep Safe
I thought it was actually a good intense football match, type of game real fans enjoy.
Agreed. Only lazy people would assume that the Norwich-Burnley game was lower league stuff. I would not be surprised if both teams survive. Burnley are right to play their style and bombarding the box with crosses will create chaos and chances. We got away with it but that was mainly due to having 3 centre-backs and a lot of luck/poor finishing. At the other end, Norwich now have a more solid base to go forward but did not really do much but we’re better in the previous games. But this has created its own conundrum – how do we use a bench full of expensive wingers to our advantage? That is the problem that now needs to be solved if the back 5 are a shoo-in and Normann in front – it is selecting the other 5 which is now the problem. First point, first clean sheet and first game where it has been 0-0 and not gone 1-0 to the opposition at some point, which is the most crucial thing. 31 more 0-0s and we stay up.
Didn’t someone suggest that the way the bottom clubs are playing that this season could see 30 points be the stay up mark as the lowest ever
Since we’re averaging enough to get 6pts, at this rate it will not matter.
Defeatist. Fight for every point and we will stay up. You can’t help what has already happened, only the next 31 games.
I don’t think you can say it’s being defeatist to talk about our average points per game, anymore than talking about possession, XG, shots on target etc.
Right now we’ve played 3 top half teams and 4 bottom half teams. It’s not unfair to say that we’re massively under performing as to where we need to be.
That feels a whole lot better doesn’t it Gary?
Some guts, some real intent, some luck, loved Kabak’s mazy run to their penalty box, surprised Tarkowski didn’t get sent off for an early bath – but overall I thought Kevin Friend quite fairly allowed both teams to express their game.
Krul was always going to come for that ball, Vydra was expecting him to do so, and it really comes down to two footballers in a tough, hard match coming together and trying to occupy the same space. Not a stonewall penalty for me, and that big girlie, Ian Wright, is now Ian Wrong!
Normann’s diving header deserved to be up the other end of the pitch sneaking past Pope, Giannoulis and Aarons both looked pretty sharp, and I like the look of Lees-Melou and McLean with Normann in that 3-man midfield. More solid performances like that from our central defenders please, it helps to generate forward motion.
One day soon both Sargent and Pukki will score goals for us, it would be great if they combined to do it against Brighton, just a matter of instinct combined with fast reactions.
Lets hope the the guys all come back from the International break fit and ready to go a’hunting!
COYY !!
Danfucious say: ‘The journey of safety from relegation starts with a single point…’
I like that. Maovellous.
Haha, Martin. Love it! Someone else with a 5 year plan, eh?
I think we’re still a bit of a soft touch……they had 4 players booked before half time, and still had 11 on the field at the final whistle.
Had it been the other way round, somehow Dyche and co would have got at least one of ours sent off!
O T B C
Well, that was tense.
Saturday evening is much more fun if we avoid a defeat. It would appear that a backbone has been located and inserted – we can only hope that it is a permanent fixture.
Burnley don’t change much. They don’t play well or badly. Percentage football doesn’t require precision, just effort. As early as 3 seconds in we were served warn8ng that Dyche had cranked the Thugometer up to 10 as McLean was left in a heap on the floor. The first of many batterings.
With regard to Kruls flying double fisted assault, personally I don’t give a monkeys as to whether he hit the player or the ball first. If indeed we did “get away with one” we’re still very much in the red when it comes to that type of decision so Burnley can sod off.
In any event, the clear and obvious red card which went unflourished in the direction of wood evened that score up. Quite how a team which sets up to kick, elbow, influence the referee, play ugly percentage football, dive and feign injury with impunity can get so precious when somebody does it back is laughable. What a bunch of hothouse flowers.
In the main, the three centre halves defended well and Gianoulis proved why he is the best left back at the club. The midfield three dug in and competed and the rest worked until the end. Kabaks glorious bullocking run was thrilling and I loved every yard as he galloped deep into Burnley territory. Normann is much more than a simple defensive midfielder. He seems to have something about him and no little ability. The twists on the edge of the box before hitting the bar were brilliant.
Let’s not get carried away with a point against a dismal outfit. But it is a fixture we routinely lose so a point gained. Now, let’s get a goal or two.
Thought Hanley was immense after the recent criticism he has had to take
Start at the back, keep those clean sheets and the rest will follow.