The Guardian's NCFC Premiership Preview

[ruthers1 0]

An interesting read and video previewing our season ahead. Good to read some of the comments on there from other teams fans, a few thinking we''ll do ok - unlike the Guardian!

http://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2015/aug/03/premier-league-2015-16-preview-no12-norwich-city?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Tweet

[Bethnal Yellow and Green 2,424]

As previews go it''s a good one. Very hard to research a team if you aren''t a fan and this message board shows that even a lot of fans have some strange opinions.

Understand where they are coming from with the fact the squad isn''t massively different from the last time we were relegated so Norwich might struggle - but the squad didn''t perform that badly in the relegation season - all apart from the striking department, which failed miserably.

Whether Norwich have the strikers to succeed now is another question of course.

[The ghost of Michael Theoklitos 0]

Clicky Linky

[PurpleCanary 6,381]

[quote user="ruthers1"]An interesting read and video previewing our season ahead. Good to read some of the comments on there from other teams fans, a few thinking we''ll do ok - unlike the Guardian!

http://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2015/aug/03/premier-league-2015-16-preview-no12-norwich-city?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Tweet[/quote]As far as the video goes the whole of the Melissa Rudd contribution could happily have been cut, and most of what Ames said. A bit more from David Conn might have been interesting.The written piece is by Barry Glendenning, who is hardly an expert on the club (Paul MacInnes, who writes for The Guardian, certainly is, but perhaps as a fan he was thought too partial). Glendenning''s lack of knowledge and insight are exemplified by his inference that because van Wolfswinkel is back at the club he is likely to play a major part this season. Not a word from Glendenning about the fact that we have tried to offload the player and so will almost cetainly have a different - and better - strikeforce than he outlines and uses as the basis for his pessimistic appraisal.

[SwindonCanary 457]

I have a sneaky suspicion that we will surprise a few of these pundits once the season starts.   

[Iwans Big Toe 382]

Good article. Pretty honest and not too far from how I feel about this season. Which is we could finish any where between10th and 19th, depending on what business we do in the next 29 days.

[Bethnal Yellow and Green 2,424]

Purple Canary wants more David Conn shocker!

In fairness to Glendenning, everything he wrote is factually true. RvW is back at the club after not pulling up trees in France. He didn''t say he would be first choice or Norwich would be reliant on him to score goals. It is almost impossible for a sports writer, who will have about 7-8 pieces on the go at once, to know about every bit of transfer gossip, or the potential ins and outs over the last couple of months.

Macinnes is a Guardian writer, but not a sports one, so is usually kept off the back pages and just wheeled out for the podcast.

[Lessingham Canary 108]

All about opinions, and to be fair its a reasonable article all things considered.

[chicken 0]

I always find it a tad harsh when folk say our squad hasn''t changed much since relegation - it''s been one season so what would you expect? Plus like for like:

2013-14:

GK; Ruddy, Bunn, Nash.

Fullbacks: Martin, Whittaker, Garrido, Olsson.

CB: Yobo, Bassong, Turner, R. Bennett.

Wide Midfield: Snodgrass, Pilkington, Redmond, E. Bennett.

CM: Tettey, Howson, Johnson, Fox, Fer.

STR: RVW, Hooper, Becchio, Elmander.

2015-16 (as things stand);

GK; Ruddy, Rudd, Kean.

Fullbacks: Wisdome, Whittaker, Olsson, E.Bennett, (Toffolo).

CB: Martin, Bassong, Turner, R.Bennett.

CM: Howson, Johnson, Tettey, O''Neil, Dorrans, Mulumbu, VOO.

Wide players: Redmond, Brady,

STR: Jerome, Grabban, Hooper, RVW, Lafferty.

I can see why, if you look at some of the pre season friendlies. people may think we are largely the same squad, but I think the reality is that we are actually better off in some departments than the season we went down.

I mean who would take Elmander and Becchio over Grabban and Jerome?

Midfield is also stronger in some ways. Perhaps we lack natural wide players in depth but if we continue to play the way we have been we have a much deeper squad to rely upon.

[ruthers1 0]

"Glendenning''s lack of knowledge and insight are exemplified by his inference that because van Wolfswinkel is back at the club he is likely to play a major part this season."

To be fair PC they''re doing a preview of all 20 clubs aren''t they?! To expect them to have their finger on the pulse with every player''s circumstances at every club is unreasonable surely?

[PurpleCanary 6,381]

[quote user="Bethnal Yellow and Green"]Purple Canary wants more David Conn shocker!

In fairness to Glendenning, everything he wrote is factually true. RvW is back at the club after not pulling up trees in France. He didn''t say he would be first choice or Norwich would be reliant on him to score goals. It is almost impossible for a sports writer, who will have about 7-8 pieces on the go at once, to know about every bit of transfer gossip, or the potential ins and outs over the last couple of months.

Macinnes is a Guardian writer, but not a sports one, so is usually kept off the back pages and just wheeled out for the podcast.[/quote]Ha! Good point, Bethnal, re me wanting more Conn.[:D]But I am afraid I don''t really buy any of your other arguments. You are right that MacIness writes on culture rather than sports, and I understand why he wasn''t chosen (although on the podcasts he is always pretty unbiased). But there are Guardian reporters who cover the Championship (John Ashdown for one, I think) who would have been much better than Glendenning.And Glendenning in effect says van Wolfswinkel and Jerome will be our two major strikers, because those are the only two he mentions! I don''t care how many pieces Glendenning has on the go. If he has been chosen to preview a Premier League club then he should at least know we have tried to sell the player he portrays as one of our two main strikers for the season...The truth is that there is probably no-one on The Guardian who could write an insightful preview on Norwich City, but Glendenning''s piece is really poor. A useful contrast to point that up is Louise Taylor''s vastly better preview of Newcastle United. She knows what she is taking about and writes with authority.

[TheTetteyRole 0]

If you read all the individual fan opinions on the site, the only fan that rates their club below 14th is Villa at 17th. All clubs are thinking ''we could shock the pundits'' - although hopefully, they won''t, and we will.

[(Northern) Irish Canary 48]

Enjoyable read.

On a separate note, I finally have to bite: the (Barclays) Premier League ceased being the "Premiership" in 2007, yet everywhere I look - and listen - I see and hear the "Premiership". Please people, get with the times!

[It's Character Forming 1,204]

Maybe they should have told someone the name changed....

[It's Character Forming 1,204]

[quote user="chicken"]I always find it a tad harsh when folk say our squad hasn''t changed much since relegation - it''s been one season so what would you expect? Plus like for like:

2013-14:

GK; Ruddy, Bunn, Nash.

Fullbacks: Martin, Whittaker, Garrido, Olsson.

CB: Yobo, Bassong, Turner, R. Bennett.

Wide Midfield: Snodgrass, Pilkington, Redmond, E. Bennett.

CM: Tettey, Howson, Johnson, Fox, Fer.

STR: RVW, Hooper, Becchio, Elmander.

2015-16 (as things stand);

GK; Ruddy, Rudd, Kean.

Fullbacks: Wisdome, Whittaker, Olsson, E.Bennett, (Toffolo).

CB: Martin, Bassong, Turner, R.Bennett.

CM: Howson, Johnson, Tettey, O''Neil, Dorrans, Mulumbu, VOO.

Wide players: Redmond, Brady,

STR: Jerome, Grabban, Hooper, RVW, Lafferty.

I can see why, if you look at some of the pre season friendlies. people may think we are largely the same squad, but I think the reality is that we are actually better off in some departments than the season we went down.

I mean who would take Elmander and Becchio over Grabban and Jerome?

Midfield is also stronger in some ways. Perhaps we lack natural wide players in depth but if we continue to play the way we have been we have a much deeper squad to rely upon.[/quote]

Very good points by chicken. And I''d rather have Redmond (playing as he did at the end of last season) and Brady on the wings rather than Snoddy/Pilks.

For me the massive difference is up front, where under Hughton we ended up trying to get some combination of RVW/Elmander/Hooper working and none of them were effective. I have a lot more faith in playing Jerome or Grabban up front than any of them.

The lazy journalism does get a bit tired. In the playoffs we just heard about how many Prem players we had in our team... now we just hear about how they were in a relegated side. You''ve got to look at the funny side.