CANARYKING 707 Posted February 23, 2020 Still not convincing at centre half, £50 million, no chance Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Canary Wundaboy 1,423 Posted February 23, 2020 Massively overrated, the moment he comes back into the team we lose the ability to defend. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cornish sam 1,039 Posted February 23, 2020 Well that knee didn't take long to jerk... Central defense is all about partnerships, knowing where your partner will be and what his strengths/weaknesses are, only so much of this can be learnt on the training field, how many times have Godfrey and Hanley actually played together? I would suggest of all our defenders these two are actually the least well balanced pairing... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Aggy 944 Posted February 23, 2020 The problem he has as a centre back is that he hasn’t got the natural defensive awareness that you just can’t teach. That’s why he regularly gets caught out of position and the defence just doesn’t look solid with him in it. I’ve said it all along - he’ll make a decent centre back. His natural attributes though more suit a defensive midfielder. He is quality on the ball - but he could be helping us play out from the back and spraying it around from inside our own half while having cover behind him. He’s also pretty good when driving forward - something you can’t do as much as a centre back. The ship seems to have sailed on his midfield career, but I still maintain he would have had more chance of becoming a real top player playing in midfield. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Making Plans 957 Posted February 23, 2020 I was thinking during the match about the quote he made this week when he said he thought was "a better central defender than he was a midfield player" Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Indy 3,471 Posted February 23, 2020 The good thing for us is that he’s not anywhere near the finished article and will be with us alongside Zimbo next year. As much as we need to improve the defence if we’re promoted again, we really need a solid midfield in front of that midfield. Tettey contract extension is like putting a bandaid over the wound not a long term viable option. £50 million no way, £15 million maybe in potential but needs to becomes more consistent to match his full potential. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chumino 57 Posted February 23, 2020 If big money comes knocking he'd easily be replaced at a fraction of the prices been banded about. Great athlete but Zimmermann and Hanley look better, missed Klose badly this season. Was very poor today. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Surfer 1,547 Posted February 23, 2020 37 minutes ago, cornish sam said: Well that knee didn't take long to jerk... Central defense is all about partnerships, knowing where your partner will be and what his strengths/weaknesses are, only so much of this can be learnt on the training field, how many times have Godfrey and Hanley actually played together? I would suggest of all our defenders these two are actually the least well balanced pairing... I think last year Godfrey + Hanley was our worst combination - for whatever reason. But whether true or not, Godfrey is still developing and he’s not worth big money just yet. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
keelansgrandad 6,680 Posted February 23, 2020 I am beginning to think Ben isn't as good as we first thought as a CB. I still think he could give it a try as a holding midfield player. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
GenerationA47 863 Posted February 23, 2020 Towards the end today it looked like we were playing 3 at the back with Ben pushing up at times, am I wrong? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
duke63 737 Posted February 23, 2020 To me he would make a better defensive midfielder. He is strong and quick and can use the ball well. It has to be worth trying him there now. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Upo 91 Posted February 23, 2020 (edited) He is rusty. It's unfortunate that he's had to stay away for so long even after recovering. But today kind of also showed that there is a reason why he skipped 3 matches: He is strong, fast, technical and maims the opposition. A centreback must never take a yellow unless they intend to. I expect him to warm up, but he just needs to seriously pay attention to what his feet are doing when he looks elsewhere. It's not just for the team. Another red card and I think it would start impacting his career seriously. A centreback who tends to look genuinely surprised when he gets a card shouldn't be a centreback. Also, I've made a point before that I think Zimmerman's recovery was the turning point in Norwich's season when the back end solidified enough to enable Farke's strategy to work. Now Zimmerman is away, and I fear we just saw that he was in fact the difference between abysmal and promising if frustrating performances. Edited February 23, 2020 by Upo Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
king canary 8,750 Posted February 23, 2020 2 minutes ago, GenerationA47 said: Towards the end today it looked like we were playing 3 at the back with Ben pushing up at times, am I wrong? No you aren't. We switched to a back three and it gave him more license to get forward. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
king canary 8,750 Posted February 23, 2020 1 minute ago, Upo said: Also, I've made a point before that I think Zimmerman's recovery was the turning point in Norwich's season when the back end solidified enough to enable Farke's strategy to work. Now Zimmerman is away, and I fear we just saw that he was in fact the difference between abysmal and promising if frustrating performances. Eh? The turning point? Our results remained the same. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Malham Canary 0 Posted February 23, 2020 Geez one suspect game and suddenly he is rubbish Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Hardhouse44 289 Posted February 23, 2020 1 minute ago, Malham Canary said: Geez one suspect game and suddenly he is rubbish 1 suspect game? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Making Plans 957 Posted February 23, 2020 18 minutes ago, GenerationA47 said: Towards the end today it looked like we were playing 3 at the back with Ben pushing up at times, am I wrong? Stable door and horse as usual Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Clint 221 Posted February 23, 2020 He was awful today but hasn’t really played for 10 weeks. Klose can’t come back soon enough! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
GenerationA47 863 Posted February 23, 2020 (edited) 27 minutes ago, king canary said: No you aren't. We switched to a back three and it gave him more license to get forward. Cool. enjoyed seeing him push forward and attempt some crosses in. Strangely our fullbacks seemed reluctant or under orders not to do the same. The people wearing black (& the apparent injury to whoever tackled BG on their goal line) conspired to stop his best move short. Will look back at that with interest, because even the yellow card looked nonsensical from my seat. It was also encouraging in the first half to see Hanley push forward, albeit only one occasion. It looked like, “ this is how it’s done, stop bloody passing backwards the whole time. Now do it.”. That’s my 100% biased interpretation, since it narks me when our players (not Emi -though he has his own issues) reach the opponents’ defences and basically turn around and say they don’t want this... 99 times per game Edited February 23, 2020 by GenerationA47 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
City 2nd 193 Posted February 23, 2020 The fact is, only one person thinks he is a centre back, and that’s the chap who picks the team! He was recommended to city as a defensive midfield player by One Mr Worthington, who managed him at York! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
daisy 145 Posted February 23, 2020 1 hour ago, cornish sam said: Well that knee didn't take long to jerk... Central defense is all about partnerships, knowing where your partner will be and what his strengths/weaknesses are, only so much of this can be learnt on the training field, how many times have Godfrey and Hanley actually played together? I would suggest of all our defenders these two are actually the least well balanced pairing... Spot on Sam. To perform well at the centre of defence you need a solid partnership made up of two guys playing regularly together, we`ve not had that all season and are suffering from it. Godfrey has played most of his games this season as the left sided CH but today he was right, I`m pretty sure Zimmerman and Hanley have also played both left and right. Not had a solid partnership all season and it shows. Injuries, bad luck, call it what you like, it will ultimately take us down. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Upo 91 Posted February 23, 2020 4 minutes ago, king canary said: Eh? The turning point? Our results remained the same. You don't think Norwich defence improved once Zimmermann came back? Seriously? Do you remember the kind of game we played after ManC? It literally was not the same team after Everton win. Statistics support this. However, I understand part of your viewpoint, because though the results improved, they did not as much as you'd hoped for given their improved performances. My hope has been all along that because they were playing better, creating more chances, giving away less chances, that eventually the results would converge to expectations. If we had Christoph and Christoph's relationship with Grant to thank for the better performances, I think we're now done for, because there is no jumping from jelly. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
GenerationA47 863 Posted February 23, 2020 13 minutes ago, Making Plans said: Stable door and horse as usual Arguably true that. Changing to new tactics & wheezes (giving different things a go, at least) is something I’ve been hoping would be introduced fora very long time, specifically since teams fairly rapidly worked out how to contain and beat us , was it back in October i think. (Apologies all round if examples have been happening for a while, I’ll readily admit to not watching enough games to judge) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cantiaci Canary 610 Posted February 23, 2020 Quality ... when fully fit. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
lake district canary 4,823 Posted February 23, 2020 No co-incidence that the best pairings seem to be those which have Zimmermann in as the common factor. Ben thrives alongside Zimbo because of the way organises the defence. A huge character at the back and we missed him today. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cantiaci Canary 610 Posted February 23, 2020 (edited) I wonder if we'll see Klose this season. Edited February 23, 2020 by Cantiaci Canary Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
king canary 8,750 Posted February 23, 2020 Godfrey looked rusty. Hanley was also rubbish though, as was Tettey so he was hardly alone in these stakes. I don't think our defensive issues are down to individual players though- thecway we defend as a team is suspect. Teams seem to find it uniquely easy to get in behind us and make our defenders face their own goal, something we hugely struggle to do at the other end of the pitch. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The Real Buh 3,765 Posted February 23, 2020 Offload him at an inflated price or move him to CDM Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
king canary 8,750 Posted February 23, 2020 I also think he'd benefit hugely from being in a back 3. His best qualities are his ability on the ball, his pace and his willingness to step out of the backline- all qualities that hugely help in a 3 man central defensive unit. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Making Plans 957 Posted February 23, 2020 24 minutes ago, Cantiaci Canary said: Quality ... when fully fit. Who is quality when who is fully fit? Godfrey? Why should he not be fully fit if he's had 3 weeks off for a red card, not an injury. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
