The benefit of not hammering teams...

[birchfest 397]

I was watching the match the other night, and like everyone else I was blown away by the first 45 minutes, the only disappointment being that it wasn’t a 3 or 4-0 lead when the whistle went for half time. I then listened to a couple of Norwich podcasts in recent days and the fact we haven’t truly spanked a side by 4 or 5 yet came up and it got me thinking about a long term payoff for how we have gone about this season.

 

With top flight football almost certainly to be our destination, I actually think that our ability to score less goals but control the game and mange the outcome is going to serve us a lot better. The interesting thing is that this doesn’t appear to be by completely by design, in a lot of games we have created more than enough chances, so we can’t say ‘ah we have switched to a Sheff United or Hughton esq style of play’, but for whatever reason we haven’t gone on to get that extra couple of goals.
 

This is something we are likely going to have to get use to again, that against better opposition we won’t be able to rely on getting a second or third goal and instead will have to rely a lot more on working as a unit to make sure one goal is enough. The nice thing is though, I think we have struck a balance where we able to do this without actually sacrificing our attacking play, I just think there is a degree of maturity and little less of the reckless abandon that made the 2018 so fantastic but also defensively leaky. 
 

My hope is that the balance has been achieved, not all out defence, but an attacking style with a much more effective screening and rearguard action if required. Our game management and ability to see games out without need a 97th minute winner also demonstrating a maturing squad. Fingers crossed this will translate into a side that can take full advantage of going a goal up in games, like Leicester away for example.

[Canary Wundaboy 1,358]

It's only a lack of clinical finishing that meant it wasn't 4 or 5-0 on Weds. McLean should have scored (good save) and Pukki hit the side netting from an angle he's made look easy in the past.

[birchfest 397]

7 minutes ago, Canary Wundaboy said:

It's only a lack of clinical finishing that meant it wasn't 4 or 5-0 on Weds. McLean should have scored (good save) and Pukki hit the side netting from an angle he's made look easy in the past.

Yeah, I mean it’s not we are being deliberately defensive and trying to hold games, but my point is, we are showing much more of a maturity to shut teams out which I think is going to be a massive benefit for next year where we might have to try and see out games with only a 1 goal lead more often than not.

[AJ 1,218]

Our game management is a million times better than it was a few seasons ago, and it is very important, because being able to win games 1-0 could be the difference between survival and not. We certainly weren't capable last time around

[Petriix 2,834]

Great post. I totally agree. It's not necessarily what fans want to see, but we're far more mature in our game-management. I do think we are deliberately being a bit tighter at the back and less adventurous once we're ahead in games. Sure, we're missing chances too, but we've learned the art of making ourselves very hard to score against. That's what will make the difference in the Premier League.

[Crabbycanary3 994]

I think that is a very good point, but I'd like to see us really hammering a team at some stage 🙂 

We've only had 2 victory margins of 3 goals (Luton and Stoke), and it would be nice to have a (or more than one) significant margin of victory on our Results CV this season 

[splendidrush 699]

We've also got to learn to win the 'six pointers' in the Prem, no point beating Man City if we can't take points off the Teams around us, Burnley, Brighton and the likes have made an art of surviving this way.....

[mannings bandy legs 385]

Would hope that you are right,and we have definitely become a great deal better defensively.This has a lot to do the personnel on the pitch,the cover the back four are getting,and the effort and workrate of every player in defending from the front.But lets be under no illusion there have been games where we could have been a goal or two down before we have imposed ourselves and seen teams off. The quality in the prem means we will probably not escape punishment if we are not at it from the off in games.Hopefully,with good recruitment and retention of certain players(Skipp,hopefully!!!)we will be in the position of being able to deal with the obvious increase in class and ability of the opposition.🔰🔰