Knapper interview

[lake district canary 4,537]

31 minutes ago, hogesar said:

Hes a massive stats guy and a big fan of xG so that'll annoy plenty on here and I'm here for it.

Yeah, well too much reliance on stats can be detrimental to spontaneity, but let's see how it goes. Good luck to him, but if Wagner doesn't improve his results, he's going to have to prove he can act decisively. Looking on the bright side, new face, new start, players have a win to build on, key players returning from injury.....could be a catalyst for improving fortunes on the pitch. Stats or no stats, I do hope so.

[Inch High aka Inchy.. 405]

1 hour ago, nutty nigel said:

Surely they could have found someone on here better suited to the role...

Vince was the obvious choice with Dean Coney's boots as his side kick.

[Terminally Yellow 2,461]

27 minutes ago, Dean Coneys boots said:

People keep saying he’s a stats man. If that was true Wagner would be toast not being given extra time 

You keep saying you're a fan of this club. If that was true you wouldn't be saying these really stupid things.

[S_81 803]

Just now, Terminally Yellow said:

You keep saying you're a fan of this club. If that was true you wouldn't be saying these really stupid things.

He’s not wrong though is he? Wagner’s stats are awful. Sackable awful at almost any other club bar Norwich 

[Midlands Yellow 3,995]

34 minutes ago, lake district canary said:

Yeah, well too much reliance on stats can be detrimental to spontaneity, but let's see how it goes. Good luck to him, but if Wagner doesn't improve his results, he's going to have to prove he can act decisively. Looking on the bright side, new face, new start, players have a win to build on, key players returning from injury.....could be a catalyst for improving fortunes on the pitch. Stats or no stats, I do hope so.

Maybe he’ll call Canary Call up to talk stats. 

[littleyellowbirdie 2,553]

2 hours ago, Dean Coneys boots said:

I really worry that if he doesn’t pull the trigger on Wagner the fans will turn on him immediately. Board should have done it in days before he arrived to give him a clean start. As it is he could reap a whole lot of negativity very very quickly 

What percentage of that negativity will be from you, do you think? 😉

[PurpleCanary 5,562]

2 hours ago, Chichcan said:

I think it's clear from that that he's not going to pull the trigger on Wagner

He's talking about developing the Norwich style as "aggressive, proactive and attacking football" and winning the ball high up the pitch which sounds a bit more like Wagnerball than Farkeball

It doesn’t sound anything like the reality of Wagnerball this season. And Knapper is hardly going to promise the fans passive, reactive and defensive football.

[Terminally Yellow 2,461]

1 hour ago, S_81 said:

He’s not wrong though is he? Wagner’s stats are awful. Sackable awful at almost any other club bar Norwich 

Of course he's wrong.

The reason he's still at the club are plain to see and have nothing to do with Knapper's predisposition to stats. Wagner can consider himself exceptionally fortunate he's at the club at a time where change above his position has given him a second chance.

[Yobocop 1,099]

4 hours ago, Dean Coneys boots said:

I really worry that if he doesn’t pull the trigger on Wagner the fans will turn on him immediately. Board should have done it in days before he arrived to give him a clean start. As it is he could reap a whole lot of negativity very very quickly 

Initially I was the same as you but clearly he is going down the stability route, ultimately it is his responsibility so I commend him for that.

there was a lot of uncertainty created by Webber leaving and perhaps him now going and a new philosophy and structure will benefit. 

One plus point for me was how he said ‘teams’ and openly talked about wanting his philosophy to be embedded into all the teams within the club including the ladies. Fantastic 

look forward to seeing what he can do 

[CardiffCanary 128]

Wow 

just watched the interview … quite clearly he is absolutely s&&@??!ing himself!

In many ways that’s not a negative, compared to Webber who was selling snake oil from day one!  But this guy is obviously nervous and isn’t used to being interviewed.

Also quite revealing how the club was putting out a video edit if our goals as he was talking rather than just watch him talk.

 

’super excited ‘ tho (!) 

is he Australian !!!

[Yobocop 1,099]

1 hour ago, PurpleCanary said:

It doesn’t sound anything like the reality of Wagnerball this season. And Knapper is hardly going to promise the fans passive, reactive and defensive football.

He hasn’t promised the fans anything, he is giving his opinion as to what he wants his football philosophy to be. Ultimately as SD that’s his remit so why would he say any different? 

[Yobocop 1,099]

1 minute ago, CardiffCanary said:

Wow 

just watched the interview … quite clearly he is absolutely s&&@??!ing himself!

In many ways that’s not a negative, compared to Webber who was selling snake oil from day one!  But this guy is obviously nervous and isn’t used to being interviewed.

Also quite revealing how the club was putting out a video edit if our goals as he was talking rather than just watch him talk.

 

’super excited ‘ tho (!) 

is he Australian !!!

Literally the same as any other media outlet on any other interview, can’t believe I’m having to defend that lol 

 

[CardiffCanary 128]

3 minutes ago, Yobocop said:

Literally the same as any other media outlet on any other interview, can’t believe I’m having to defend that lol 

 

True … 

but all the more obvious because he quite obviously is shi££&ing himself!  It seems a little contrived…. Especially how rubbish we are at the moment!

[Monty13 2,235]

5 hours ago, BroadstairsR said:

One point is that he comes over with a completely different personality to the last three (I include Moxey.) Quite humble, in fact.

He's more of a "football man" too

We could really do with some humility from those in charge right now so I see that as an absolute win.

[Monty13 2,235]

3 hours ago, nutty nigel said:

Does he have a hard or easy act to follow?

 

Hard act on the pitch (although not that hard given our current state) and easy act off it. 

He needs to put together a team that consistently wins football matches again and try to do that without pissing supporters off would be a nice bonus.

[canarybubbles 1,923]

8 hours ago, Dean Coneys boots said:

I really worry that if he doesn’t pull the trigger on Wagner the fans will turn on him immediately. Board should have done it in days before he arrived to give him a clean start. As it is he could reap a whole lot of negativity very very quickly 

I don't think the fans will turn on Knapper in that situation. I think most fans recognise the difficulty of the task he's facing - turning round a decline that has been happening for more than two years and which may well be accelerating.

If you wanted to be cynical, you might think that the Board will be very reluctant to fire Wagner because, with Webber gone, he is their last shield against the fans' anger. Why would they blame a guy who has been in his post for a couple of months? They'll go for the top and I'm sure the Board are well aware of that.

[Jim Smith 2,322]

He speaks well and appears less of an ***** than Webber which is a good start but I don’t like this taking time to assess if changes are needed business. He should have been doing that before officially joining. He needs to make a change immediately to get some momentum and win the fans over. Our idiot board will just think they can ride it out if we scrape another win v a very poor QPR side. 

[By Hook or Ian crook 917]

9 hours ago, Dean Coneys boots said:

People keep saying he’s a stats man. If that was true Wagner would be toast not being given extra time 

Now I have the scatman song in my head but with stats instead of scat thanks 😂

[PurpleCanary 5,562]

9 hours ago, PurpleCanary said:

It doesn’t sound anything like the reality of Wagnerball this season. And Knapper is hardly going to promise the fans passive, reactive and defensive football.

The full quote is this:

 

“Generally speaking, I’m quite a purist when it comes to football. I think that’s understandable when you see the experience that I’ve had over the last 10 or 15 years and some of the people that have probably influenced me along the way,” Knapper told City’s club channels. 

“Ever since I was a kid, the football that I’ve enjoyed watching is attacking, proactive football where teams try and control the game with the ball. They’ll be the protagonist in the game, and want to go to win the ball back high and be aggressive and try to entertain and score goals.

“That’s what excites me as a fan. That’s what I think is the best way to approach the game. I think that it’s important to acknowledge regardless of playing style or philosophy people may or may not like, it’s important to have consistency and have a team that’s identifiable.

“I want to make sure, over time, we can build something that people understand exactly what a Norwich team looks like.

“It’s important that when people come here to watch us play, they’ll understand what they’re going to see, and they can expect to see some common themes, and what represents a Norwich City team.

“Whether that’s men’s senior team, women’s senior team, or any of our academy teams. That’s something that will take time, but ultimately for me, it’s aggressive, proactive and attacking football.”

 

So controlling the game by possession, which sounds more like Farkeball than even what the theory of Wagnerball is, let alone the current reality. And twice he talks about the time it will take to achieve this. Which strongly suggests he doesn't anywhere like see it at the moment. And it is hardly a binary choice between Farkeball and Wagnerball.

Edited November 15, 2023 by PurpleCanary

[Dean Coneys boots 1,400]

9 hours ago, Terminally Yellow said:

You keep saying you're a fan of this club. If that was true you wouldn't be saying these really stupid things.

It would seem we have different yardstick by which to gauge being a good fan.
 

Your notion that good fans must happy clap a selfish board, who are clearly a spent force and unable to take us forwards, and meekly accepting a clearly failing manager -  isn’t my own. I say good fans should hold the ownership to account for the good of the club’s future and demand much better tactics and subs from their manager. 

[Bert 236]

Clearly out of his depth if he is stupid enough to go into the derby with Wagner in charge and we lose he should do the decent thing and resign immediately and unconditionally how can the stowmarket 2 get the major decisions so wrong so consistently  

[Graham Paddons Beard 2,434]

12 hours ago, cambridgeshire canary said:

Ah. One of the Dīckheads I assume ? 

[Capt. Pants 4,250]

In terms of playing style it would seem he has a lot of work to do with Wagner! Think Arsenal and the way they dominate possession but probably still overplay when they get near the opponents penalty area. Even against mediocre teams we struggle to work the ball out of our own half at times.

Will that and does that need time? Probably yes as I'm not sure we have the quality of defenders to playout from the back either.

Not a lot will happen ahead of the QPR game what with players being away otherthan some discussions with the coaching team so I'm not expecting much change for that game.

 

 

[Jim Smith 2,322]

3 minutes ago, Capt. Pants said:

In terms of playing style it would seem he has a lot of work to do with Wagner! Think Arsenal and the way they dominate possession but probably still overplay when they get near the opponents penalty area. Even against mediocre teams we struggle to work the ball out of our own half at times.

Will that and does that need time? Probably yes as I'm not sure we have the quality of defenders to playout from the back either.

Not a lot will happen ahead of the QPR game what with players being away otherthan some discussions with the coaching team so I'm not expecting much change for that game.

 

 

I will judge him on whether he identifies the need for a proper defensive midfielder (who can also receive the ball and move it on) in January. Anyone who can’t see that knows nothing about football in my view. So many of our problems over the last 3 seasons (and the previous prem season before that) have flowed from this squad deficiency. It exacerbates all other weaknesses with the defence and then things snowball. 

[Soldier on 160]

Encouraging that he wants to get back to an identifiable playing style across all age groups. Webber said similar but seemingly tore this protect up once Farke was sacked. We have been pretty dreadful to watch ever since with no true identity.

[lake district canary 4,537]

2 hours ago, PurpleCanary said:

So controlling the game by possession, which sounds more like Farkeball than even what the theory of Wagnerball is, let alone the current reality. And twice he talks about the time it will take to achieve this. Which strongly suggests he doesn't anywhere like see it at the moment. And it is hardly a binary choice between Farkeball and Wagnerball.

Definitely more like Farkeball.

I'm still spitting feathers two years on from the Farke sacking (yes, I know I should get over it) because we had exactly what was needed in place, but we squandered it because of the numptyism of trying to stay in the Pl at all costs, rather than pursue the long term approach - an approach which was presumably why Farke had been given a new tour year long contract in the first place......

However, looking forwards, we have to steady the ship, makes sure we start winning a few more matches - and give Wagner a few weeks to build a relationship with Knapper and then switch coach if it doesn't work out.

[alex_ncfc 662]

He may appear nervous on camera, but he's probably not used to being interviewed in the roles he has had. Hopefully he will be more about taking action and making changes in the background rather than coming out too talking too much. Most clubs have a sporting director who you probably wouldn't even know about or be able to name, because they just get on with their tasks without much fanfare, but Webber always struck me as having a massive ego, although there were obviously also times where his communications and openness with the fans was welcomed as it gave a good insight into the running of the club.

[PurpleCanary 5,562]

2 hours ago, Jim Smith said:

I will judge him on whether he identifies the need for a proper defensive midfielder (who can also receive the ball and move it on) in January. Anyone who can’t see that knows nothing about football in my view. So many of our problems over the last 3 seasons (and the previous prem season before that) have flowed from this squad deficiency. It exacerbates all other weaknesses with the defence and then things snowball. 

Serious question, Jim, because I have no idea what the answer is. It is fair to assume the key influence on Knapper has been how Arsenal have played over the dozen or so years he has been there. Which means Wenger, Emery and Arteta. Has there been a consistent style despite the different managers, and did they all have your heart's desire - a proper central defensive midfielder?

[Dean Coneys boots 1,400]

I do worry he looks a little wet behind the ears and might not, therefore, be the strong experienced critic to hold club to proper account. We don’t need a timid yes man given the mess. Time will tell I guess. 

[It's Character Forming 1,161]

4 hours ago, PurpleCanary said:

The full quote is this:

 

“Generally speaking, I’m quite a purist when it comes to football. I think that’s understandable when you see the experience that I’ve had over the last 10 or 15 years and some of the people that have probably influenced me along the way,” Knapper told City’s club channels. 

“Ever since I was a kid, the football that I’ve enjoyed watching is attacking, proactive football where teams try and control the game with the ball. They’ll be the protagonist in the game, and want to go to win the ball back high and be aggressive and try to entertain and score goals.

“That’s what excites me as a fan. That’s what I think is the best way to approach the game. I think that it’s important to acknowledge regardless of playing style or philosophy people may or may not like, it’s important to have consistency and have a team that’s identifiable.

“I want to make sure, over time, we can build something that people understand exactly what a Norwich team looks like.

“It’s important that when people come here to watch us play, they’ll understand what they’re going to see, and they can expect to see some common themes, and what represents a Norwich City team.

“Whether that’s men’s senior team, women’s senior team, or any of our academy teams. That’s something that will take time, but ultimately for me, it’s aggressive, proactive and attacking football.”

 

So controlling the game by possession, which sounds more like Farkeball than even what the theory of Wagnerball is, let alone the current reality. And twice he talks about the time it will take to achieve this. Which strongly suggests he doesn't anywhere like see it at the moment. And it is hardly a binary choice between Farkeball and Wagnerball.

Thanks you Purple for quoting this.  I'm at work so haven't had time to watch the interview yet, but it's good to hear what he's saying rather than just quotes pulled out of context.

 

For me as a City fan of 30 years, this is what I want to hear and I hope he's able to implement it.  Our style of play has clearly been variable over the years, but generally when we've been successful IMO it's been when we've had an approach with many of the above points included.  And not for example more of a Stoke or Burnley (pre-Kompany) approach which I'd never want to see from City.