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Good manager, happy to back his judgements whether I agree with them or not. The fact I happen to disagree with some of them doesn’t to me mean he can’t take us any further, it just means I have a different point of view.

You can question all you like HH 44 , but you wont like the answers. For all Emis brilliance ,on saturday I was left with one image burnt into my retinas. It wasnt his neat through ball to Pukki, it was a stationary figure in yellow, both arms raised ,midway between their penalty box and the halfway line. This figure had lost the ball, liverpool were instantly into our half and this figure was standing, doing sweet fa, as the rest of the team scrambled to get back into defensive shape. I know his stats on assists and tackles are very good, but how much better would they be if he packed in this ridiculous act that is all too familiar. I doubt it has escaped DFs attention either. As the old saying goes ....there's no 'I' in Team. Theres a pretty big one in Emi though. Emi is undoubtedly a talented player, but.......and this is a very big but, he is also a liabilty sometimes. Watch Rupp, nowhere near as gifted as Emi, but the lad never stops working, if dispossessed, he instantly switches to recovery mode, no histrionics, no ref chasing, no 30 seconds sat on the ground feeling sorry for himself, just hard work. For the sake of the team, it is sometimes better to get 100 % of a lesser player than 70% of a more talented one. Remember , at this point in the game Emi WAS the fresh legs!!!

To achieve what he has with the playing assets available to him is simply genius. He is in no danger whatsoever. Quite the best worst team we’re ever likely to see.

That is almost 100% wrong, the last thing teams need at this level is a CDM running around like a headless chicken. That job is to hold position & protect the back four, you are effectively criticising Tettey for doing his job, doing it well and doing it better than anyone else at the club in all the squads of that period for his entire career.

There have only been a handful of games where we weren't competitive, perhaps: Burnley (a) 0-2 Villa (h) 1-5 Man U (h) 1-3 Man U (a) 0-4 You could throw in large sections of: Liverpool (a) West Ham (a) (post Zimm injury) Palace (a) Southampton (a) (nearly nicked a draw at the end) That's 8 games out of 26 where we perhaps looked out of our depth. Which leaves 16 games where we were deservedly in the mix for points, successfully in 10 games having beaten: Newcastle (h) Man City (h) Everton (a) Bournemouth (h) and drawn with: Bournemouth (a) Arsenal (h) Leicester (a) Spurs (h) Palace (h) Newcastle (a) Farke himself & pretty much every squad member have been on a steep learning curve since going 0-4 down at Anfield. The period between losing to Crawley and the win at Goodison was very damaging, the Man City win being the aberration there. You didn't need hindsight to foresee the risk of going into the season with two young prospects at full back and then Klose, Godfrey, Zimmermann & Hanley with the untried Amadou as emergency back-up in the centre. I believed that goals would be shipped but that there'd be enough control around midfield and threat up top to draw & win more games, probably about 10 points better off than where we are now, i.e. firmly in the relegation mix but with a strong chance of being safe with a game or two to spare. I visualised an Amadou/Leitner deep midfield with Tettey, Vrancic & Trybull also seeing plenty of pitch-time over the season. I think it's fair to say that we had a disproportionate share of defensive injuries before Christmas which weakened the whole team & limited options & flexibility. Amadou turned out to be a disappointment, Roberts offered nothing, Vrancic also got injured, Leitner faded away, Stiepermann (fundamental last year) & Trybull don't look up to the task, & Pukki has lost his edge & looks jaded since his foot injury. Beyond early season Pukki and occasionally Cantwell, there's very little serious goal threat. Drmic hasn't been given much of a chance when fit, Buendia (while important & effective) hasn't netted, ditto Onel, one for McLean I think & none from a defender. The squad has admirably adapted & become more pragmatic as players have returned from injury and the season has progressed. However some of the weaknesses which were somewhat masked by results from last season, e.g. losing possession in the defensive third, defensive set-pieces, haven't been sufficiently improved upon (better recently). This, coupled with the inevitable reduction in "dangerous chance creation" on promotion to this division & the over-reliance on Teemu has played a large part in how the table stands. We could all pine for "what might have been" or talk about "missed opportunities" and we're all entitled to our views of course. But I believe that if one was to "cast a cold eye" over Norwich City's overall performance (so far) this season, we've been generally competitive in the large majority of games, we've held our own, we've provided entertainment, we've frustrated, we've created memories, we've shown we belong here, we've stuck to our footballing principles and the players are still giving it everything which is all we can ask. We're surely going back down now, yet strangely there is still a level of optimism due to realism, canny financial management and a welcome attitude towards youth & clever recruitment. It remains to be seen if this risky strategy results in 'bouncing back' better prepared but I'm still on board with the Farke/Webber philosophy. I'm looking forward to seeing how the lads compete over these last 12 games, hoping for a outing at Wembley, how the player trading is managed over the summer and how next season is attacked. OTBC! Apologies - unintentionally long post! Too much thinking

First job IF we go down is making sure Farke stays Ridiculous there are some fans that want him gone

Has your account been hacked LDC?

Don't want him sacked. Think he is the right man to take us forward but by the same token I've been disappointed with his game management this season and I hope over the summer he will reflect and learn from it just like the players have had to adapt and learn too. For a club like us to stay up you need to have players and a manager that earns you a few undeserved points from time to time with a bit of extra nous or an inspired sub/change in tactics. I don't think we've had that at all this season.

Don't think i've disagreed with a post any more than the OP in recent times.

There is so much wrong in this post it is mind-blowing. Cantwell and Buendia are the only midfielders who have contributed anything in terms of goal threat this season. Those two combined have assisted over a third of our goals this season, and have scored over 25% of our goals. The idea he should be 'dictating play' is also a fundamental misunderstanding of his role. Show me any team where the play is dictated from a midfielder pushed out onto the left?

Thanks OP some very interesting stats. I disagree with you about a fifth centre back though. I think that you just have to acknowledge that losing 3 players to one position at the same time is highly unusual and cannot be properly prepared for. If not, you would have to have four goalkeepers; four strikers etc etc. I'm sure we could have afforded someone, but would have thought that the risks were too low to risk damaging the balance of the squad. Manchester City could certainly have afforded it but again chose not to (with similar negative results). Overloading the squad with "spares" is, imo, a threat to squad dynamics.

Todd Cantwell has embraced the PL far greater than any other Norwich City player this season.

The club is sticking to the model Webber set out. Farke is sticking to his footballing philosophy whilst trying to adapt to the complexities of the PL. Whilst not being happy to be relegated, most fans understand this approach. Some, the inpatient glory hunting fans want us to splash the cash, risk the financial future of the club and still risk relegation. It’s pretty obvious where you stand on it all.

Because we’ve been unlucky in the majority of our matches and the fans haven’t believed we can beat these teams. Fans like you are a lot of the problem with your negative attitude. Your negativity on this forum translates into the match day performances. If posters on here were more positive then I believe we would soon be seeing that positivity in the results on the pitch

I'll explain. After watching football for over 60 years I have seen hundreds of wingers like Hernandez. They can usually run quickly and several of them, including Hernandez, have a decent shot in their locker. And as far as positives go, that's it. Most of them, including Hernandez, flatter the deceive most of the time. They run down the wing at break neck speed and then they haven't go a clue what they are going to do when they get near to the business end of the run. They have no awareness of where other teammates are and end up either losing the ball or getting rid of it as quickly as possible, usually to an opponent. Hernandez goes round & round in circles and ends up falling over himself and then looks totally bemused as to why he hasn't won a free kick. As for his defensive qualities, quite honestly he is a liabilty.

What a weird response to what is actually quite a heart felt op, once again labelled trolling or being negative. For goodness sakes grow up. It's not such a controversial idea after all. We're not scoring goals in outfield play - and the chief creators/strikers are not doing the business. So what is the answer? Replace them with players that have showed they at least as likely to do the business as the ones that have been on the pitch. It's not a negative idea either - it's called being pro-active and quite a positive move to make.

Lakeys realises he isn’t getting much attention so comes up with a somewhat contrary OP. Gets some bites. That’s the lot of a Football Forum Celebrity Nothing much else to add.

Michael Cox wrote an interesting piece for the Athletic recently about how the best players in the League also fail a lot. Buendia was (at the time he wrote the article) the third most disposed player in the league. He was also the third-best player at beating his opponent. Trent Alexander Arnold has the most unsuccessful passes and failed crosses in the league- he also has 10 assists from right back. Players like Emi will fail a lot because they try a lot. But for a team like us we need players who will do this otherwise we'll never create anything. It is on Farke to find a way to accommodate a player like Buendia without sacrificing defensive solidarity.

Not the endorsement I was looking for to be honest.

Here they are supporting him at one of his recent events.

Football Hooliganism is obviously something that needs to be addressed. Largely it has been. Through sensible acceptance of the issues and dealing with them. Rugby has never had those issues . Rugby has never had the grass roots reflection of social issues that Football has. The history of why Man Utd hate Liverpool or why Celtic hate Rangers go to the heart of the problem. Football is an easy access , working mans game. Unsurprisingly it reflects society and social issues much more than rugby. The thought of Bath and Exeter knocking 10 bells out of each other like Millwall and West Ham do is all about historical social grievances. Rugby still exists in a bubble . “Rugby is better than Football” is just a pompous , pointless , worthless opinion that doesn’t help at all. That I have been able to safely take my kids to more football games than my parents could is due to acceptance of the issues and finding practical remedy. Years ago you got attacked getting off a bus wearing colours. Not anywhere near as much now. Rugby has a fine cultural position regarding other fans and the ref etc, but there are very good reasons for this. Rugby is not a global sport for the masses. It is a sport born out of middle and upper class society with the control that that affords I expect you don’t get many punch ups at Polo matches either .

FTW and Crabby - Some of us support , and sponsor Bury Rugby Club lads. Very happy to stand you a beer when next in the area. You could both probably explain some of the rules to me too 😂 PS I get to wear my City scarf too !

I maintain that Corbyn and the momentum 'left' misunderstood the 2017 election result. It was not a vote for 'Corbyn' but a vote against May and for many an opportunity to clip May's ERG Brexit wings by lending a vote to Labour as being at least neutral on Brexit - in the sure knowledge that Corbyn wouldn't actually win! However - as noted Johnson has discovered Corbyn's magic money tree and apart from Brexit is in many ways a liberal (if it suits him). His spending infra-structure plans will of course bear no fruit in this electoral cycle but at least the 'feel good' sound-bites serve to cover the yawning reality chasm that is opening as the result of Brexit and the trade negotiations start to bite. For labour Starmer is the obvious credible 'way back' to the voters. Lisa Nandy's time will come but only Starmer is currently capable of landing some punches onto the government and holding them to account. RLB would be the end for Labour as a credible opposition let alone a party of government.

We were playing against the best side in the world right now. It was entirely sensible to [stay] defensively disciplined and attempt to play on the counter. Our approach was so effective that we can genuinely look back at two or three moments in the game and say we could easily have won had things gone our way. We can be disappointed in the result without blaming anyone. Liverpool are much better than us and we caused them real problems and came pretty close to an upset.

So Buendia was rubbish for the whole 7 or 8 minutes he was on the pitch, according to some. However, we only made two defence splitting passes all game that resulted in goal scoring opportunities and he made one of them. Yes he comes with risks and he makes errors but he is always capable of pulling something out of the bag that creates a chance. Capable players they may be but I haven't yet seen that quality yet from either Duda or Rupp.

VAR is so ****ing comical in this country. When I make passing jokes about how certain teams get it in their favour it turns out they're no longer jokes.

The more you post the more confident I am that we'll stay up. You've never been right yet Hardhouse!

True we’ve repeatedly been playing well at around the 65min mark with no obvious substitutions to make

It passes the time doesn’t it? I’m back to work tomorrow after a day off today with man flu. So sadly I’ll not be playing .

Died aged 87. Saw him play at Carrow Road in 1959 Legend R.I.P.

Really? Against Liverpool you want us to open ourselves up and play our championship style attacking football. We saw how that goes when we played at Anfield. Farke is finding a balance and other than Saturday I can’t think of many occasions he’s played ‘try not to lose for 90 minutes’. That was Hughton football and it’s insulting to Farke to be associated with it, He deserves a lot more respect than that

I'd have backed Allison to save in his position from that far out. End of, Mr. Bell

We get that you went to the Cup game at Burnley Lakey - you've told us all, roughly a million times. We get that you think Vrancic should be starting you've told us all roughly a million times. We even get that you totally bizarrely think Hernandez should be starting - you've told us all roughly a million times.

Bring it on I say, as we’d never be one of those clubs I’d be more than happy competing against the other left behind unfashionable clubs like Leicester, Leeds, Everton, Arsenal and Man Utd.

As per the title really. He's our most well rounded / all round centre midfielder in my opinion. And a goal threat from range... which we're desperate for. Or am I just wrong?

Also, while they aren't brawling in the stands, boozed-up Rugby types are often extremely unpleasant individuals. When I was at UEA the Rugby soc had a much worse reputation for causing issues than the football team. Same across most universities as far as I'm aware.

Lesson for all. When you haven’t got a clue how to answer a question just talk in riddles.

Come on Walsh!

North Walsham fan? 🙂 Looks like promotion for both of us this season... 👍

If we go down then anything other than automatic promotion next season will be a failure. If that’s the “strategy” then that’s what they have to deliver. Even if we sold every one of our In demand players (which we won’t) we would probably have £100m in the bank, a tidy profit from this season, parachute payments and a squad including Krul, Byram, Klose, Hanley, Zimmerman, Trybull, Tettey, Vrancic, McClean, Hernandez, Rupp, Stiepermann, Drmic and Idah plus Citi and the kid from Cov before we’ve spent a penny.

What else can we come up with to disguise the simple fact that we are not good enough, at the moment, for this level. Any number of reasons but not referees or VAR for our demise.

Tettey was one of our highest rated players yesterday. Actually he was second highest behind Hanley. Someone else said Todd doesn't do enough defensive work yet he had more successful tackles than any other player on the pitch yesterday. As always, people will see what they want to see to a degree.

Why should anybody have to explain the reason that they support a team from anywhere? I was born in Watford and have lived in the area almost all my life but I support Norwich. Is that ok with you?

Yep. How on earth people can complain, is beyond me. Especially re Subs. We set up to nullify their biggest threats which was pace and power on both flanks both up front and wing backs. Rupp was defensively superb at helping Aaron's who, had we played Buendia instead, would likely have been horribly exposed. In fact, in Buendias cameo he lost the ball 3 times in 10 minutes. We couldn't afford that over a longer period of game time, we would have been ripped apart. Anyone who can't see Rupp is a good player, I'll struggle to converse with.

I would suggest that all our problems of late (since the defensive injury crisis) are in midfield. Ultimately we're suffering because our midfielders seem incapable of kicking the ball into the goal; be it a surging run to finish off a counter attack, beating their man and tucking the ball home, or finding the top corner from 25 yards: our midfield aren't doing it. Duda and Rupp seem pretty much on a par with the rest in that regard. Playing nice football between the two boxes is all well and good, but our inevitable relegation is the result of a failure of our midfield to score goals.

Tettey was excellent yesterday. Again. Did his job.

I think that depends on how you view it. For me, the fact Tettey can be considered one of our better midfielders points more to a failure in player recruitment and squad usage. This club should be miles past Tettey now. In Tettey, I see a player who works hard and holds his position well, but ultimately isn't physically able to dominate a midfield against other Premier League teams. I suppose if he is one of our better midfielders, the fact we are comfortably bottom of the league says it all and shouldn't come as a surprise.

I agree. Rupp will do a job this season but I don’t think they’ve really improved us at all and more than that I worry about the impact on the rest of the squad and particularly on Onel, Trybull, Vrancic and Stiepermann who are players we will need next season but can’t get on the pitch whilst these two stroll into the first team and get to start every week. I think it’s really dodgy man management. Starting either of these two ahead of Emi is very questionable in my book.

For games like this there should be a number given by the club that you can text if you feel a season ticket holder has sold their seat to an away supporter. The stewards should then check and if found to be an away supporter should be ejected from the ground ( it clearly says everywhere home supporters only ) and the season ticket holder should have their ticket removed. Should other fans ( not season ticket holders ) be found selling on tickets to away fans they should be banned from buying in the future. I hold my hands up to sitting in home ends on the odd occasion but these tickets have always been bought from the opposing club, not opposing fans.