An INAUSPICIOUS START

[bob.eastick@yahoo.ca 20]

Only three games in and already 7 point back from the top. Two away games lie ahead before the home match against Watford.

If there is a sudden surge in form and we secure 6 points from the next nine that will put us at 8 points from the first 18, already a plarform in the lower half of the league.

For whatever reason players with the talent to make a differance seem intent on leaving the club. One wonders abouit the ability of the new management team to inspire and motivate, The Canaries are reknowned for taking advantage of the financial gain albeit at the expense of depleting the quality of the squad. 

The preseason did nothing to inspire confidence. Yes, new players have to adjust and settle in. That is the case for all clubs. All the rhetoric aside the early signs are far from positive. Six preseason games plus three championship games and the only victory achieved against a team from a lower level, Those with rose tinted glasses will recoil with :It is early days, give them a chance". Fair enough but if we sit in the bottom half of the table as Christmas approaches the transition will have been an abject failure. Mediocrity is not the way forward.

In any sport you are judged by the results.

Edited August 25, 2024 by bob.eastick@yahoo.ca
typo

[JonnyJonnyRowe 1,047]

I think its been a promising start considering the upheavel in the squad. Players need time to bed in.

We need another couple through the door, I'll start to judge Thorup and our top 6 chances at the end of September.

Remember that Sheffield Utd are one of the better teams in this league, and we were the better team against Blackburn.

I was seriously worried after the Oxford game but we are improving.

[bob.eastick@yahoo.ca 20]

The most positive spin possible. One win in nine games including preseason and that against a lower level club. Hopefully your optimism proves to be the case.

Edited August 26, 2024 by bob.eastick@yahoo.ca
typo

[TheGunnShow 7,470]

Said at the start of the season I thought we'd be around 18th or so after 10 games, but improve going through the season as players get used to playing with each other. This is really not a time to panic or set exaggerated expectations.

[hogesar 10,953]

Let's firstly take stock that at the very least we have improved significantly from Oxford which was the performance of an already relegated championship side.

Perhaps considering the injuries and everything, Wagner just seriously over performed last season and we should be setting our sights lower. But so many on here told me that anyone could do better than Wagner even once we reached the playoffs so I'm not so sure.

Second half of yesterday was much more a blueprint of what Thorup wants and we're seeing it a lot sooner than I thought we would after watching Oxford. The problem with playing that way is if you can create enough. Farke struggled without Emi, and Forson is currently outmuscled far too easily.

[cambridgeshire canary 7,933]

I mean had if our defence been better I do feel would have won our last two leauge fixtures.

But of course "If my grandmother had wheels she would be a bike" etc

Edited August 25, 2024 by cambridgeshire canary

[GJL Mid-Norfolk Canary 2,073]

Is anyone really looking at the top?

[lake district canary 4,879]

You can be near the bottom of this league at Christmas and still make the play offs, so a slow start is not the worst thing. Obviously we'd like to be near the top, but it's a long season and still early days. 

Whether top two is still a possibility depends on if there are two or three teams who shoot ahead from the pack, in which case they would be hard to catch up to, but so far it looks as if this may be a very competitive league this season. 

Edited August 25, 2024 by lake district canary

[TheGunnShow 7,470]

1 minute ago, cambridgeshire canary said:

I mean if our defence had been better given the chances we have had I would argue we really should have won our last two leauge fixtures.

But of course "If my grandmother had wheels she would be a bike" etc

I preferred the infamous quote from Dieter Eilts - "wenn meine Oma ein Bus wäre, dann könnte sie hupen!" (if my grandmother were a bus she could honk her horn!)

[FenwayFrank 2,718]

7 minutes ago, bob.eastick@yahoo.ca said:

One win in none games

Have to say that's an impressive result 

[cambridgeshire canary 7,933]

2 minutes ago, FenwayFrank said:

Have to say that's an impressive result 

On the other hand we are now unbeaten at home in 20 matches.

Nobody seems to talk about that stat for some reason.

[LaUnionCanary 150]

21 minutes ago, bob.eastick@yahoo.ca said:

Only three games in and already 7 point back from the top. Two away games lie ahead before the home match against Watford.

If there is a sudden surge in form and we secure 6 points from the next nine that will put us at 8 points from the first 18, already a plarform in the lower half of the league.

For whatever reason players with the talent to make a differance seem intent on leaving the club. One wonders abouit the ability of the new management team to inspire and motivate, The Canaries are reknowned for taking advantage of the financial gain albeit at the expense of depleting the quality of the squad. 

The preseason did nothing to inspire confidence. Yes, new players have to adjust and settle in. That is the case for all clubs. All the rhetoric aside the early signs are far from positive. Six preseason games plus three championship games and the only victory achieved against a team from a lower level, Those with rose tinted glasses will recoil with :It is early days, give them a chance". Fair enough but if we sit in the bottom half of the table as Christmas approaches the transition will have been an abject failure. Mediocrity is not the way forward.

In any sport you are judged by the results.

Your first four words sums up our situation. 42 games to go. 

[BigFish 2,330]

16 minutes ago, bob.eastick@yahoo.ca said:

The preseason did nothing to inspire confidence. Yes, new players have to adjust and settle in. That is the case for all clubs. All the rhetoric aside the early signs are far from positive. Six preseason games plus three championship games and the only victory achieved against a team from a lower level, Those with rose tinted glasses will recoil with :It is early days, give them a chance". Fair enough but if we sit in the bottom half of the table as Christmas approaches the transition will have been an abject failure. Mediocrity is not the way forward.

In any sport you are judged by the results.

Yes, in sport you are judged by the results. But at the finish not at the start of a contest. No, it is not the same for all clubs. For some clubs other factors (incomings, outgoings) remain in play until the window closes, and then it takes time to bed in. Preseason tells us nothing in that situation. Those who know about football seem to see signs of progress. You do not. Go figure.

[SwearyCanary 1,368]

What complete tosh from the OP. 3 games, newly promoted Oxford away with them desperate to start well, Blackburn where we were wasteful and they were the firm team and play decent football and Sheffield Utd, a team of well-drilled players and far less of a squad upheaval to manage and a manager with much more time to implement his system. We have lost 1 in 3, we are playing much nicer stuff at times than all of last year and we are creating chances.

Frankly I’m astounded I’m seeing quite clear elements of where we are hoping to get to already, with a young squad. 

You can doom monger if you want, but you clearly don’t understand what a complete identity change takes in terms of time. 

[A Load of Squit 6,260]

17 minutes ago, LaUnionCanary said:

Your first four words sums up our situation. 42 games to go. 

It's going to be hard enough without you stealing a game from us, isn't it 43 games to go? 😀

[Europe_93 51]

It’s early days and not fair / sensible to judge when we’ve lost  3 key offensive players  and the new manager not having had sufficient time to buy and assimilate new players to implement what he wants.

interesting that management are blamed for not being able to inspire and get buy in to a project, well if I was a player and gave everything over last season and then had half my fan base screaming at me after the final whistle at Leeds - yeah maybe I would be looking for a new club to give my alll to.

Not meant to be a criticism, merely an observation that perhaps this wasn’t the best place to play last season.  I do believe change was needed, we know more is to come, we now require patience, not always associated with today’s supporters.

[Big Vince 430]

Throwup in his very first press conference stated: "We will lose games".

[LaUnionCanary 150]

Oh, my bad. Just angry at the negativity of the op.

[LaUnionCanary 150]

5 minutes ago, A Load of Squit said:

It's going to be hard enough without you stealing a game from us, isn't it 43 games to go? 😀

 

[canarydan23 4,823]

40 minutes ago, hogesar said:

Wagner just seriously over performed last season

Lol.

As we're seeing in this window, last season we had a £20 million plus playmaker destined for a Champions League team,  a striker worth over £20 million, a winger who would be courted by a French giant for huge money, a Chilean midfielder wanted by a top Turkish for serious money, a striker who couldn't even get a regular starting berth worth close to £10 million, and a Scottish centre midfielder wanted by a team who had Champions League aspirations when they tried to sign him.

All that talent in the Championship and sixth is a serious overachievement?! Wow.

[lake district canary 4,879]

52 minutes ago, cambridgeshire canary said:

On the other hand we are now unbeaten at home in 20 matches.

Nobody seems to talk about that stat for some reason.

How many of those have been draws?

[TheGoogler 614]

Given we went from 17th to 6th last season, I think it's a little much to start writing off the season already. 

I would be happy with a season of entertaining football that allows us to avoid any sort of relegation battle, though, even if it means not being in the promotion picture. I've seen and heard enough to want to see what Knapper and JHT can do given time and patience. 

[......and Smith must score. 1,637]

57 minutes ago, LaUnionCanary said:

Your first four words sums up our situation. 42 games to go. 

Your last four words sum up your arithmetic skills.

There’s 46 games in a season 😉

[DraytonBoy 256]

Thorup has to be given plenty of time otherwise what's the point, a Top 10 finish with a defined style played by a young squad should be seen as a successful season.

[BigFish 2,330]

51 minutes ago, canarydan23 said:

Lol.

As we're seeing in this window, last season we had a £20 million plus playmaker destined for a Champions League team,  a striker worth over £20 million, a winger who would be courted by a French giant for huge money, a Chilean midfielder wanted by a top Turkish for serious money, a striker who couldn't even get a regular starting berth worth close to £10 million, and a Scottish centre midfielder wanted by a team who had Champions League aspirations when they tried to sign him.

All that talent in the Championship and sixth is a serious overachievement?! Wow.

All true, but the general perception was this was a poor team, built on the foundation of a poor team the prevous season. It was never going to compete with the relegated three so 4th to 6th was an achievement for Wagner. The objective was to get lucky in the playoffs, it didn't happen but could have. It wasn't pretty so this year we have a different strategy. We will see how this pans out.

[Canaries north 156]

2 hours ago, SwearyCanary said:

What complete tosh from the OP. 3 games, newly promoted Oxford away with them desperate to start well, Blackburn where we were wasteful and they were the firm team and play decent football and Sheffield Utd, a team of well-drilled players and far less of a squad upheaval to manage and a manager with much more time to implement his system. We have lost 1 in 3, we are playing much nicer stuff at times than all of last year and we are creating chances.

Frankly I’m astounded I’m seeing quite clear elements of where we are hoping to get to already, with a young squad. 

You can doom monger if you want, but you clearly don’t understand what a complete identity change takes in terms of time. 

I agree with most of what your saying apart from Sheffield Utd. They have had even more squad upheaval than us and are playing a different formation. To balance that up most of their signings have played in England before so probably easier to settle in. 

[GodlyOtsemobor 2,836]

Fully expected us to have a bumpy start but then pick up towards October/November then really push on on the second half of the season. 

I predicted 12th as final finish. 

[Grumpy Old Man 16]

Does City EVER do anything the easy way?

[Gordon Bennett 948]

Unfortunately there are too many people about like the OP, who think a magic wand can be waved when a new manager arrives. That's pie in the sky, especially with such a turnover of players.

We ain't gonna be challenging for promotion this season. It's a project which will take years rather than weeks or months. I'd say mid table somewhere is inevitable this season, but it's not really about this season anyway.

[Robert N. LiM 6,442]

Personally I'm really pleased to see an acceptance from so many posters in response to the OP that this is a project that will take some time.

Would be interested to hear from those who go whether that is reflected in the ground. How are punters at CR feeling about two draws from our opening two games. Are fans in the stands going to give JHT time?