However poorly timed, ill-judged and bloody annoying this international break may be – and it’s all of those things – it does permit those of us who write about the club the chance to draw breath, take a step back and survey the lie of the land ahead of the run-in. The Wednesday-Saturday relentlessness of […]
Column
A traditional target man he isn’t, but Pukki *is* the perfect target man for Farke
There is no place in Daniel Farke’s system for lumping balls long to a six-foot-three number nine to hold up or flick on. But in Teemu Pukki, City have a more nuanced version of the classic lone centre-forward. The Finn, who has conquered the Championship again this season, is of average height, slim build and […]
NCFC international round-up… including Onel’s brush with a volcanic ash cloud
Three days or so into the international break, a few anomalies have already thrown themselves up within our far-flung travelling contingent and a couple of them you couldn’t make up if you tried. Onel Hernandez was demonstrably desperate to make his debut for Cuba, which he eventually did under the very strangest of circumstances by […]
From the Archives: Our Ed advising that, in hindsight, hindsight is best avoided
International breaks are a nightmare for editors of footballing websites that, as a general rule, don’t cover international football. From, sometimes, three pieces of content per day to *Family Fortunes klaxon*. So, to the archives I head and who better to turn to for a piece that was written eight years ago but which still […]
Dear English Football League…
This is a message to those who administer the Championship of the English Football League, thinly disguised as a piece written for MyFootballWriter. As I write, we are currently being forced to fulfil a fixture at Deepdale, home of Preston North End FC at 1500 hours on Good Friday, April 2. We have asked for […]
FA Youth Cup Preview: “It’ll be a tough game”| Weaver wary of Hammers
Norwich City’s under-18s face West Ham this afternoon in the FA Youth Cup fourth round; a tie that is, according to Head of Football Development Steve Weaver, by no means a gimme. More than three months after the third round- a Covid-related pause in the competition postponing the fixture until now- Kevin Keen will bring […]
Fair play to Mogga’s boys but the biggest downer of the day was Gibbo’s rolled ankle
Reality check? Being brought back down to earth? Or simply being faced by a hard-working, typical Tony Mowbray side who had weighed us up before kick off and stuck with their plan to press consistently hard, play to their strengths and ride their luck at times? The choice, dear MFW readers, is yours. Personally, I […]
City fail to make it ten on the spin but with Swans and Bees faltering the PL beckons
All good things… etc, but it’s no less disappointing when those good thing do come to an end. And that nine-game winning run was a good thing. A bloody marvellous thing. That we let slip a couple of points yesterday was not the end of the world, especially after said run has opened up a […]
BLACKBURN PREVIEW: Does Emi return? Can Bradders help end the winning run?
It’s to the gang of four I head for some help with this week’s preview: Andy Delf, Colin Michael, Don Harrold and John Scent. Take it away guys… So, how did you watch/listen to events at the City Ground unfold? iFollow? Sky red button? Radio Norfolk? And where does that opening half-hour rank in your […]
So, who misses out tomorrow? Buendia, Dowell or Rupp?
As the team was revealed on Wednesday night there was one question on every City fan’s lips: how will we survive without Emi Buendia? Three hours later, the question had flipped on its head. Lukas Rupp and Kieran Dowell’s fantastic performances against Nottingham Forest came at the perfect time; with Buendia missing, Farke’s attacking quartet […]
Forest (A) Tactical Breakdown: Hughton’s 4-4-1-1 allows for a Dowell masterclass
Schooled in Hughtonball, many Norwich fans highlighted a visit to the City Ground as a potential banana skin. What transpired was that Chris Hughton’s trademark 4-4-1-1 was his undoing, against a City side in full flow. Although a pair of flat lines of four are easy for players to understand and implement, the rigidity a […]
The Wait of Expectation | Farke v Hughton
The in-match social media output had been a mixture of relaxed assuredness and excitement as City purred their way through yet another winning performance on the banks of the Trent. Amongs the fully invested Canary content, and supported by the watching football media, was a growing opinion from Forest fans that they were watching two […]
Same old Norwich… winning again, and that’s without the world’s most brilliant Che
I have absolutely no faith in the planning department at Norfolk County Council – or very many of their other departments either come to that – but I must for once congratulate them for granting us permission to spirit our training complex at Colney to the banks of the Trent last night. The ease with […]
Nine wins on the spin for our flying Canaries and now it’s a question of when not if
“We can still catch Norwich”. Ivan Toney. Sky Sports. March 12, 2021. Dream on, Ivan. In fairness to Brentford’s finest, he was only saying what every pro is conditioned to say and, besides, said gent has a certain swagger that probably has him believing that anything is possible. But he’s wrong, just as his manager […]
VIDEO: Norwich City Loan Report – February 2021 | Norwich Talk
For the love of Todd! – Norfolk’s very own footballing throwback
“Who needs God when we’ve got Todd!” Those were the words of the fans of Fortuna Sittard during the brief loan spell Todd Cantwell had with them in 2018. With each passing week, it seems that they had an appreciation for the gifts of the boy from Dereham that some (including, it seems, Aidy Boothroyd) […]
Wednesday (A) Tactical Breakdown: The key battleground of the number 20s
City came through a stern test to record an eighth win in a row at Hillsborough. So, how did the Owls provide such a problem and what did Daniel Farke do to combat it? The key aspect in the first half was Wednesday’s aggressive press, a problem the Canaries have regularly faced this season. Darren […]
FOREST PREVIEW: Wasted chances… a jinxed Glenn Murray… and Hughton-ball
MFW is privileged to once again welcome back our favourite Forest fan, loyal supporter and all-round scion of matters concerning activities in and around the City Ground Christian Brown to inform us about how things currently stand on the banks of the Trent before our meeting with the men in Garibaldi red. Christian and I hadn’t spoken for […]
“Every day, it’s a-gettin’ closer, goin’ faster than a roller coaster…”
I woke up early on Saturday morning to put the laptop on and discover: Blackburn 0, Brentford 1. Later in the day my mood didn’t improve as I sucked up Luton 0, Swansea 1. And then a Welsh side I possessed high hopes of on the day conceded late in stoppage time to make it Cardiff […]
Eyes on the prize, as City repel spirited Wednesday & edge closer to the p-word
Ivan Toney is a confident chap. Bullish even. Those who watched his post-match interview on Sky last Friday following Brentford’s 1-0 win over Blackburn will know what I mean. Before presenting himself with the Man of the Match award (he would also have awarded himself the trophy) Ivan got the hump when the Sky Sports […]