Feedthewolf

Yessss, we're back! I'm going to do my damnedest to post my pick every week this season, as I've been a bit of a flake for the past couple of years. It's going to be a really tough ask to get a winning six in the current circumstances, but if anyone can do it then @Kathy can! I'm going to offer Ajax as my banker this weekend; they're 1/5 to start off with a win away to Sparta Rotterdam. Quite short odds for an away win, but home advantage is obviously diminished in the absence of full stadia and the gulf between the two squads is colossal. As for @norfolkngood's wagers on the Norwich match, I really like @Wacky Waving Inflatable Arm Flailing Tube Man's shout of Dowell to score the first goal at 9/1, but embellish that with a scorecast of Dowell first goal and Norwich win 3-2, and you're looking at 300/1. Enticing. Good luck, everybody... may the football gods smile upon us this weekend.

*somewhere in the background, Lukas Rupp can be heard breathing a huge sigh of relief*

Looks like the plan to get people back into stadiums is being delayed/revised, according to Boris in the briefing just now. Grassroots sport unaffected by the new measures.

Hi folks. I'm back, and this time I'm raising money for five different Norfolk-based charities/organisations, including our very own CSF! I'm planning to ride 5,000 miles over the course of the next 12 months; my 'stretch target' would be to complete it before the last game of the season away to Barnsley. I plan to ride through every single village in Norfolk as part of the campaign, and you can see me talking about it tomorrow night on Anglia News (6-6.30pm). I'll put social media/fundraising links up in due course, but for now, feel free to share the press release below. I'm also looking for companies to sponsor the ride: I'm especially looking for someone to cover the cost of repairs/gear (which shouldn't be that much), and also someone to help with printing of flyers/posters/business cards for the ride. In exchange for support, the company would be given publicity through my website, press releases, social media channels and possibly branded audio/video content. Also, as before, I'm happy to ride with anyone who fancies it, and I can come to you wherever you may be in Nelson's County. If anyone's interested in helping with sponsorship or wants to be involved in any other way, please drop me a DM or email me at colofivethousand@gmail.com. OTBC! Wolfie/Colo x 5000COLO overview.pdf

Cheerio, Jamal, and thanks for the memories. GOALKEEPERS (5, 1 on loan) HF 1 Tim Krul (born 3.4.88, age 32): signed until 2022 (contract signed in June 2019) F 33 Michael McGovern (born 12.7.84, age 36): signed until 2021 (contract signed in April 2019) H 38 inj Aston Oxborough (born 9.5.98, age 22): signed until 2022 with club option to 2023 (contract signed in March 2020) Y Archie Mair (born 10.2.2001, age 19): signed until ???? and on loan with King's Lynn for 2020-21 season (contract signed in June 2019) H Daniel Barden (born 2.1.01, age 19): signed until 2022 with club option to 2023 (contract signed in March 2020) DEFENDERS (15, 2 on loan) H 31 Sam McCallum (born 2.9.00, age 20): signed until 2024 (contract signed in January 2020) HY 2 Max Aarons (born 4.1.00, age 20): signed until 2024 (contract signed in July 2019) H 3 inj Sam Byram (born 16.9.93, age 26): signed until 2023 (contract signed in July 2019) 6 Christoph Zimmermann (born 12.1.93, age 27): signed until 2023 with club option to 2024 (contract signed in July 2019) HY 4 Ben Godfrey (born 15.1.98, age 22): signed until 2023 with club option to 2024 (contract signed in June 2019) 15 Timm Klose (born 9.5.88, age 32): signed until 2022 (contract signed in May 2019) Philip Heise (born 20.6.91, age 29): signed until 2022 and on loan with Karlsruher SC for 2020-21 season (contract signed in January 2019) HF 5 Grant Hanley (born 20.11.91, age 28): signed until 2023 (contract signed in November 2018) H inj 43 Akin Famewo (born 9.11.98, age 21): signed until 2023 (contract signed in November 2019) Y Rocky Bushiri (born 30.11.99, age 20): signed until 2023 and on loan with KV Mechelen for 2020-21 season (contract signed in July 2019) H 26 Bali Mumba (born 8.10.01, age 18): signed until 2024 (contract signed in May 2020) H Jordan Thomas (born 2.1.01, age 19): signed until 2021 with club option to 2022 (unknown when contract signed) 16 Xavier Quintilla (born 23.8.96, age 24): signed on loan until 2021 (contract signed in August 2020) H Matthew Dennis (born 15.4.02, age 18): signed until 2022 (contract signed in July 2020) H Caleb Richards (born 8.9.98, age 21): signed until 2021 with club option to 2022 (contract signed in February 2019) H 34 Ben Gibson (born 15.1.93, age 27): signed on loan until 2021 (contract signed in September 2020) MIDFIELDERS (20, 1 on loan) 27 Alex Tettey (born 4.4.86, age 34): signed until 2021 (contract signed in February 2020) 7 Lukas Rupp (born 8.1.91, age 29): signed until 2022 (contract signed in January 2020) 8 Mario Vrancic (born 23.5.89, age 31): signed until 2021 (contract signed in July 2019) Tom Trybull (born 9.3.93, age 27): signed until 2022 with club option to 2023 (contract signed in July 2019) 17 Emi Buendia (born 25.12.96, age 23): signed until 2024 (contract signed in July 2019) HY 14 Todd Cantwell (born 27.2.98, age 22): signed until 2022 (contract signed in July 2019) F 23 Kenny McLean (born 8.1.92, age 28): signed until 2023 (contract signed in September 2020) 25 Onel Hernandez (born 1.2.93, age 27): signed until 2023 (contract signed in June 2019) 18 Marco Stiepermann (born 9.2.91, age 29): signed until 2022 (contract signed in May 2019) H Louis Thompson (born 19.12.94, age 25): signed until 2022 with club option to 2023 and on loan with MK Dons for 2020-21 season (contract signed in October 2018) Moritz Leitner (born 8.12.92, age 27): signed until 2022 (contract signed in June 2018) 28 Melvin Sitti (born 14.2.00, age 20) signed until 2024 (contract signed in January 2020) F 21 Danel Sinani (born 5.4.97, age 23) signed until 2023 (contract signed in July 2020) Y 19 Jacob Lungi Sørensen (born 3.3.98, age 22) signed until 2023 (contract signed in July 2020) 11 Przemysław Płacheta (born 23.3.98, age 22) signed until 2024 (contract signed in July 2020) H 24 Josh Martin (born 9.9.01, age 18): signed until 2023 (contract signed in May 2020) H Daniel Adshead (born 2.9.01, age 19): signed until ???? (contract signed in June 2019) H 10 Kieran Dowell (born 10.10.97, age 22): signed until 2023 (contract signed in July 2020) HY 20 Oliver Skipp (born 16.9.00, age 19): signed on loan until 2021 (contract signed in August 2020) H Charlie Gilmour (born 11.2.99, age 21): signed until 2021 with club option to 2022 (contract signed in July 2019) FORWARDS (6, 1 on loan) HF 35 Adam Idah (born 11.2.01, age 19): signed until 2023 (contract signed in July 2019) F 22 Teemu Pukki (born 29.3.90, age 30): signed until 2022 with club option to 2023 (contract signed in July 2019) F Josip Drmic (born 8.8.92, age 28): signed until 2022 (contract signed in June 2019) H Carlton Morris (born 16.12.95, age 24): signed until 2021 and on loan with MK Dons for 2020-21 season (contract signed in May 2019) Sebastian Soto (born 28.7.00, age 20): signed until 2023 but currently awaiting work permit (contract signed in July 2020) H 9 Jordan Hugill (born 4.6.92, age 28): signed until 2023 (contract signed in August 2020) Finally, here are all the squad members listed by year of contract expiry, with (+1) indicating we have the option of an extra year: 2021 McGovern, Vrancic, Morris, Tettey, Quintilla (loan), Skipp (loan), Thomas (+1) Gilmour (+1), Richards (+1), Gibson (loan) (10 players, 3 with an extra year) 2022 Krul, Klose, Heise, Trybull (+1), Cantwell, Stiepermann, Thompson (+1), Leitner, Pukki (+1), Drmic, Rupp, Oxborough (+1), Barden (+1), Dennis (14 players, 5 with an extra year) 2023 Byram, Zimmermann (+1), Godfrey (+1), Hanley, Hernandez, Idah, Sinani, Sørensen, Famewo, Martin, Bushiri, Soto, Dowell, Hugill, McLean (16 players, 2 with an extra year) 2024 Aarons, Buendia, McCallum, Sitti, Płacheta, Mumba (6 players) ???? Mair, Adshead (2 players, both signed in June 2019 and publicised as 'long-term')

Maybe time to call it a day, Waveney? Following NCFC certainly doesn't seem to bring much joy into your life.

I think I'd rather have Tettey there than Rupp, he is proven quality in that position.

Well I'm presuming that Gibson, Sorensen and Sitti were signed with that in mind. And we did keep four clean sheets in five matches in pre-season.

Would probably start with Onel ahead of Rupp, although that does leave us more exposed when Aarons overlaps. However some of the criticism of Rupp on here is ridiculously overblown. He joined a failing team in the midst of capitulation, and has been granted no clemency whatsoever by a lot of our fans. I think he'll at least prove himself to be a decent squad player at this level.

I'm just saying what I think might happen. However we do it, the most important thing is to win. That could be accomplished by dominating possession and making ourselves solid at the back - something that many fans have been clamouring for - or by going for the jugular. I'm pretty ambivalent as to which method we choose, but we absolutely need to win the match.

Er... yes, I'm aware of these players. I can even spell their names correctly. I believe that those players will be most effective against tiring legs. I'm not suggesting we play for a draw; I'm suggesting that we use defensive solidity (something that we have been sorely lacking and must learn to cultivate) and technical competence (the key tenet of Farke's philosophy) to dominate possession, and hopefully get ourselves in a winning position. We can then use pace and directness from the bench, coupled with a more physical striker in Hugill, to take advantage of the gaps created as Huddersfield chase the game. Personally, I think that's what Farke will do. I could be wrong, and that's fine. If he takes a more attacking approach and goes with the faster and more direct players from the start, I'd have no problem with that. I certainly wouldn't turn the stream off in a huff, irrespective of which team he chooses.

I'm glad we can rely on your support.

I think Farke will pick a team that's defensively solid and technically good, with the pace and power to come off the bench against tiring legs. Expect to see something like this: Krul Aarons Zimmermann Godfrey McCallum (assuming Lewis leaves and Quintilla still injured) Skipp McLean Rupp Dowell Cantwell Pukki Subs: McGovern, Gibson, Tettey, Sorensen, Hernandez, Placheta, Hugill

I remember going to see a Q&A with Farke hosted by the NCFSC a few weeks after he took over. Someone asked a question from the floor along the lines of: "What kind of manager are you? Are you the sort of manager who is kind and supportive to the players, or are you tough with them?" His reply (verbatim): "Well, sometimes you have to be tough with the guys, and sometimes you have to give them cheesecake." I think the takeaway from that comment is that almost all managers have the ability to do both; they know when to put an arm round a player, and when to give him a rocket. The same applies collectively... do you give the players the belief that they can turn things around by reminding them how good they are, or by unleashing the hairdryer when they're playing like dogs? Nobody knows what happens in that dressing room, but I can't imagine Farke as a shrinking violet who will just say "there there, let's try again next week". Publicly criticising a player (or the team) is fraught with danger, and some of the best managers in history have insulated their players from the criticism of fans and media by insisting that the blame be laid on their doorstep as the man who picks the team and the tactics. I'm sure if Farke started tearing a strip off individuals - or the team in general - in the media, there would be fans questioning his ability to manage the dressing room. We have a squad that's big enough and good enough to win this league. We have a manager and a tactical system that has already won this league. While we're still within touching distance of the top two, trust in the man and trust in the methods. Ultimately, if we're sitting in the bottom half in a couple of months, I very much doubt that Webber will be scared to roll the dice; he's a careerist who wants another promotion on that CV come hell or high water.

If we failed to win any of our first eight matches, I would be surprised if Farke was still here. The club showed great loyalty to back him to the hilt after our appalling end to last season, and in my opinion, we've done better business with our squad than any other team in the Championship. All the variables are set up in our favour, and, while I don't expect us to walk the league, I expect us to be there or thereabouts. On paper our first four fixtures look pretty tough, so I don't think the board will sharpen the axe too readily, especially as we had 5 points from our first 6 games when we won the title two seasons ago. I love Farke, but he is not indispensible and we cannot fall too far off the pace. I firmly believe we will be in the top two - or at least very close to it - by November.

Farke also won this division playing brilliant football last time he was in it, but you haven't factored that in for some reason? We've played a pointless League Cup match with 15 players unavailable, against a full-strength Championship team. Six of our starting eleven had never started a competitive match for the club before. Four were teenagers. This is a new season. We have a ton of new players. We've signed the experienced centre-back we were craving. We've signed pacy wingers and an old-fashioned centre forward. We've strengthened the holding midfield position. The league is what matters. End of.

I think it was only Lakey who said that.

Well yes, that's the obvious positive. Last season we lost to Crawley from League Two, without all the international absentees and without the additional fixture congestion caused by the late start. The competition is a complete waste of time unless you're an established PL club looking for a back door into Europe, we just need to put all our eggs in the Huddersfield basket and forget about today.

Try and support the team for a bit, maybe learn to identify the odd positive for balance. See how you get on, you might enjoy it.

If we'd won today but then lost at Huddersfield next week we'd still have ended the winning run... but given the choice, I think everyone would identify Huddersfield as the more important match. Besides, it's not like he chose to rest a bunch of players to keep them fresh for next week; his team selection was forced by the mass unavailability. Next Saturday, no excuses. And I expect us to win.

If we lose next Saturday then I'll be genuinely concerned. Being out of this competition is genuinely a blessing, and the longer the season goes on, the more I expect our big squad to come into its own.

A 'near gimme'?! Jesus Christ. We will have FIFTEEN additional players available to us, the vast majority of whom were unavailable today because they're good enough to be representing their countries.

Where's the new topic, Keith? You're not letting your trolling standards slip, are you?

He was our most consistent outfield performer last season, as evidenced by being second in the POTS voting behind Krul. Clearly signings have been made to reinforce this area of the pitch, but I find that statement frankly weird.

I'm not bothered about it either. The club did the right thing.