Getting the best out of our wingers

[Jim Smith 2,314]

When Hoot was appointed i read a tactical analysis of his time at birmingham which suggested that he places a heavy emphasis on wing play and that his teams do not hit long balls but instead favoured a lot of diagonal balls to wide men hugging the touchline. I also hada conversation with a friend of mine who works in the media and covers the midlands clubs who informed me that Hughton had been instrumental in Chris Burke''s 15 goals last season by coaching it into him to cut inside more rather than always taking on the full back.

Watching the sky highlights of the Spurs game it therefore poppsed into my head that we are already seiing some evidence of hughton''s ability to get the best out of wingers in the performances of the Snod and Pilkington over the last two games. Both have been very prominant for us and have posed a major threat to the opposition. Whilst at times the final ball still leaves a bit to be desired i think we could be in for stellar seasons from both of them and thats a pretty exciting prospect. Both also seemed to be much more attentive to their defensive duties than i''ve seen previously but also had a degree of freedom to roam across the pitch when we were attacking. With the quality of the crosses they are whipping in plus the cultured left foot of Garrido its surely only a matter of time before Holty gets his first goal and is off and running.

All in all pretty encouraging stuff. We have two great wingers at the club and i think we have the right man to get the best out of them.

[Sir Digby Chicken Ceasar 0]

I think you''re right, it would also mean he could play the existing 4 4 2 with holt and one other up front, or 4 5 1, adding Butterfield to the midfield playing just behind the lone striker who I think would be the lad Kane in that formation.   

[lake district canary 0]

We seem to have an array of options this season and with the tactical astuteness of Hughton and his team, it is going to make for an interesting season.  E. Bennett has the ability to cause problems too as a winger,  Butterfield obviously is going to come in to the equation too.    The forwards all have the abilty to score - given the chances - so for me its always Holt as first choice - if given a chance he rarely misses the target.   But Morison, Jackson and Kane are also capable.    Kane is the interesting one for me, because if he comes on as a sub and looks sharp and scores one or two he could become the main man.      

 

 

Wingers - good options, goal scorers - good options, defence looking stronger, plenty of options in midfield.  

 

 

Bring on the Spammers!  

 

[Gingerpele 0]

Just a minor point, and something I think far too many of our fans seem to forget, is Pilkington had a pretty fantastic season last year by all accounts.

Scored a fair few goals, played well frequently. Had a couple of injuries that kept him out for a few games. But stepping up from League One, and after a major injury (he''d been out for half the previous season hadn''t he?) and playing as well, and scoring as many as he did was fantastic. He has a tendency to fade out of games, or start off slow (basically he rarely keeps the performance up for 90 mins, sometimes no more than 45 mins).

[shefcanary 2,389]

Good to see a topic about football again on here.  The above observation is brilliant news - Norwich have always been at their best when the wingers are on fire.  This year we really can go from strength to strength when Pilks & Snoddy are on their game - not the quickest but in Snoddy one of the most gifted footballers for a while.  It will be interesting to see how Pilks and Garrido link up.  Be it 4-4-2 or 4-2-3-1 the wingers will play a significant part in how we do this year.  We just need to ensure we feed them regularly.

 

OTBC.

[York Canary 28]

I must say that seeing Garrido overlap and deliver those beautiful crosses is also very encouraging. Hope all the lads stay injury-free and then we have a great chance of getting better and better

[Muddy funster 0]

Agreed.  It''s also very nice to see a good rapport already between Martin and Snodgrass down the right.  This is during the game and also celebrating the goal - check out the stills of Snddy celbrating his goal.  The two happiest people seem to be Martin and Snodgrass (obviously) but they seem to be sharing the moment more than the rest - just an observation.  Anyway, I think that bodes well.

[Phillip J Fry 0]

[quote user="Muddy funster"]Agreed.  It''s also very nice to see a good rapport already between Martin and Snodgrass down the right.  This is during the game and also celebrating the goal - check out the stills of Snddy celbrating his goal.  The two happiest people seem to be Martin and Snodgrass (obviously) but they seem to be sharing the moment more than the rest - just an observation.  Anyway, I think that bodes well.[/quote]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lL4L4Uv5rf0

[:D]

[Muddy funster 0]

[:)] Not quite but not far off!

[ZLF 271]

maybe using his experience as a full back?

I agree with GPele though, Pilikington was our touch of class last season, such good use of the ball, plenty of threat and assists and an excellent goal ratio, backed up with excellent defensive contributions.

Add in a little more consistency and he is a POTS contender.

And for Snoddy, I dont know enough to be sure its CH influence, but if these two perform we have an excellent season in prospect - with Bennett as back up we have real options.

Pilkington is the player I am most keen on seeing progress from last seasons signings, Garrido from this

[Lets be aving you! 0]

The close of the transfer window got the best out of our whingers.

[Indy_Bones 441]

What I want to know is what happened to the E.Bennett we signed who wasn''t afraid to have a pop at goal and actually take defenders on whilst cutting inside?That''s what he did for Brighton previously but this was rarely in evidence last season (Spurs game aside).I''m thinking that if this is a change CH wants to make, then he as well as Pilks and Snoddy should directly benefit from it, although being fair both Snoddy and Pilks are very capable crossers of the ball.The point about Pilks being very hot and cold is bang on IMHO, and when Bennett is fit again, he''ll be able to come on to replace a flagging Pilks but on the right, with Snoddy moving to the left.Looking good in this area though :)

[pete 318]

Elliott Bennet to come back who could be better than Snoddy, if he is will have to deploy Snoddy in central midfield behind Holt. 

[Indy_Bones 441]

[quote user="pete"]Elliott Bennet to come back who could be better than Snoddy, if he is will have to deploy Snoddy in central midfield behind Holt. [/quote]I personally don''t think Benno will be able to overtake Snoddy, but I''d love to be proven wrong :DSnoddy already looks like he''s adjusted to this level and is causing serious problems for opposing defenders, whereas Benno just wasn''t that threatening most of the time last season and certainly didn''t make the in-roads into the defence that Snoddy does. If he started playing more directly like when he was at Brighton then he''d have a much bigger impact and threat, and it certainly looks like CH is going to want wingers to do that so it''s all good.I do agree that he does have the potential to get better and provide real competition for a starting place, and given the flexibility of both Pilks and Snoddy to play on opposing flanks, the three of them give us excellent coverage.

[Nuff Said 5,092]

But is it down to Hughton or Calderwood? [^o)]

[Indy_Bones 441]

[quote user="Nuff Said"]But is it down to Hughton or Calderwood? [^o)][/quote]Hughton, otherwise we''d have seen Holt on the wing and Ruddy upfront...

[the bristol nest 0]

Good post. I am excited by the interplay between Garrido and Pilks as well as Martin and Snods. This is an area where we have potentially made a huge step up in quality.

[Six Pack 92]

Hughton is totally obsessed with defence and with the players he''s used in the first 3 league games, our only source of attack is either through the wingers or the long ball out from the back line.The absence of Fox & Hoolahan has meant nothing attack wise through the middle of the park (long range & short range).

It is a good thing that Pilkington & Snodglass have performed as well as they have or we''d have no attacking impetus whatsoever. Pilkington, Snodglass & Elliott Bennett will all have plenty of game time don''t worry about that. But if opposition concentrate their defence on our wingers I fear the supply from the wings may dry up. But I fully agree that both Pilkington & Snodglass have performed admirably and the fullbacks have combined with these 2 to build attacks.

Many supporters have got carried away with the performances of the last 2 matches I feel and closed their eyes to results. We took maximum points from the corresponding fixtures against QPR & Spurs last season - 6 points and only have 2 points this time around yet people are ecstatic ??? I think we are too one dimensional in attack and if we continue this way - we will be found out & goals will dry up. The wingers have proved their worth, now Hughton needs to be brave and sort out the middle. Defence & 1 goal per game (average from last 2 game) isn''t going to do it. A long cross in from the wing is a low percentage against a packed defence.

[Phillip J Fry 0]

[quote user="Six Pack"]A long cross in from the wing is a low percentage against a packed defence.[/quote]

Good thing we don''t cross that much then.

[Phillip J Fry 0]

[quote user="Six Pack"]Hughton is totally obsessed with defence and with the players he''s used in the first 3 league games, our only source of attack is either through the wingers or the long ball out from the back line.[/quote]

Norwich play an average of 59 long passes a game, only 13 more than Southampton (who play the least), and almost 20 less than Newcastle (who play the most) 

[Phillip J Fry 0]

[quote user="Gareth"][quote user="Six Pack"]A long cross in from the wing is a low percentage against a packed defence.[/quote]

Good thing we don''t cross that much then.

[/quote]

I''ll correct myself. Norwich play the 3rd most crosses in the league, 24 a game, behind Newcastle (25 a game) and Man Utd (32). Manchester Utd. are joint 5th top scorers in the league, something must be going right with regards to crossing and scoring goals.

[Six Pack 92]

[quote user="Gareth"][quote user="Gareth"][quote user="Six Pack"]A long cross in from the wing is a low percentage against a packed defence.[/quote]

Good thing we don''t cross that much then.

[/quote]

I''ll correct myself. Norwich play the 3rd most crosses in the league, 24 a game, behind Newcastle (25 a game) and Man Utd (32). Manchester Utd. are joint 5th top scorers in the league, something must be going right with regards to crossing and scoring goals.

[/quote]

Don''t want to compare us to Man U Gareth, what I am trying to point out is we have only scored 2 goals & captured 2 points. We could have won both the last 2 games if we had better creativity through the middle of the park. The 2 wingers did their jobs and cut in when the opportunity presented but we lacked a specialist in the middle.

[Phillip J Fry 0]

[quote user="Six Pack"]Don''t want to compare us to Man U Gareth, what I am trying to point out is we have only scored 2 goals & captured 2 points. We could have won both the last 2 games if we had better creativity through the middle of the park. The 2 wingers did their jobs and cut in when the opportunity presented but we lacked a specialist in the middle.[/quote]

Or we could have been defensively porous and conceded more goals than we could score, it''s all hypothetical, nothing is certain. In all honesty, we created more than enough chances against QPR and Spurs to win the game by about 3 goals but thanks to poor finishing, some bad luck, and an outstanding goalkeeping display by Friedel we didn''t get what we deserved.

[Six Pack 92]

[quote user="Gareth"][quote user="Six Pack"]Don''t want to compare us to Man U Gareth, what I am trying to point out is we have only scored 2 goals & captured 2 points. We could have won both the last 2 games if we had better creativity through the middle of the park. The 2 wingers did their jobs and cut in when the opportunity presented but we lacked a specialist in the middle.[/quote]

Or we could have been defensively porous and conceded more goals than we could score, it''s all hypothetical, nothing is certain. In all honesty, we created more than enough chances against QPR and Spurs to win the game by about 3 goals but thanks to poor finishing, some bad luck, and an outstanding goalkeeping display by Friedel we didn''t get what we deserved.

[/quote]

I agree with you on this Gareth but the chances presented were still 50/50 percentage thats why we either unluckily missed or the goalkeeper saved. You''re right that if Hughton played more attack minded mids something could give defensively but last year we went for broke and outscored the opposition

[Phillip J Fry 0]

[quote user="Six Pack"]I agree with you on this Gareth but the chances presented were still 50/50 percentage thats why we either unluckily missed or the goalkeeper saved. You''re right that if Hughton played more attack minded mids something could give defensively but last year we went for broke and outscored the opposition[/quote]

You can''t always do that though. Football is about finding the balance between attacking fluidity and defensive solidarity. Norwich, at the moment, look defensively solid AND attackingly creative. You''re right that there were times under Lambert where he would put out very offensive formations with the intention of attacking the team into submission (Aston Villa away springs to mind when he tried to play two striker, plus Hoolahan, two wide midfielders playing very wide and Johnson all by his lonesome in central midfield) but this is not Hughton''s style, Hughton wants to find balance in this team, something I''m in favour of. Too bring on old cliche, we may not be scoring the goals but we are creating the chances, whilst retaining an air of solidarity to our play that I never felt under Lambert throughout our Premier League campaign. As the season goes on we will score goals if we continue to create the amount of quality chances we have over the past two games if chances dry up then a more offensive team may well be on the cards, but at the moment I''m happy with how the team are playing.