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Juggy

My man of the match today...

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Was Bradley Johnson. Would need four or five hands to count with fingers the number of times that he threw his body in front of the ball or tracked back to block a cross.

People are often critical of his passing but I think he generally does the simple job of breaking up play very well, is the best we have at doing that anchor man role.

And what a debut Yobo had today. Good no nonsense centre half, very composed, if he can keep playing like that this season then wouldn''t be against him coming in next season, been saying for a while that we need an experienced head at the back, didn''t think Yobo would fit the bill but fair play he may to tick that box for us.

I have a few negatives and criticisms that I shall keep to myself this week, because it was a great defensive performance and we created a few chances on the break which could have been goals (huge improvement on our performances in pretty much every other game against the top four this season, both in defence and attack).

Need to keep grounded though, because we are probably going to need to carve out a couple more results against the big boys between now and the end of the season.

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Whilst he certainly didn''t have a poor game (even if his passing is still shite), I''d personally have said Bassong was our best player today.I genuinely lost count of the number of clearances he made in tough situations and he seemed FAR more composed than he has in other games to boot.Frankly I think Johnson will have to make way when Howson returns to allow the midfield three of Fer, Tettey and Howson.

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I have to agree with the OP here, why he gets such a rough ride on here is quite beyond me.

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Who was it who made that shocking clearance which turned into a great pass to a Man City player? Couldn''t tell from the Barclay.

Bradley was immense today. Moved the ball quickly and really protected the back 4 well. Not sure we should be talking about dropping any of the midfield 3 on the back of that performance.

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Ollson for me, he''s been outstanding for us the past few games

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Bassong made a clearance which spun in the air and man city got it back, only for Yobo to boot it out. Very much a team performance today...motm hard to call!

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Fer looked much more comfortable today, maybe an indication of where he is best deployed. Altogether great team display, a point no one would have foresaw

Does anyone know the prematch odds on 0-0.??

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Its difficult to pick out one really. Olsson made 2 world class blocks. Bassong AND Yobo were outstanding. Johnson, Tettey and Fer all superb. Redders an absolute menace. When his final delivery gets more consistent he is going to be a real class act. Pilks had a good game too.

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Fantastic team performance but for me Olsson was exceptional, easily his best performance for us and I can''t remember him putting a foot wrong, so I''d give him the nod over the rest.

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Its difficult to pick out one really. Olsson made 2 world class blocks. Bassong AND Yobo were outstanding. Johnson, Tettey and Fer all superb. Redders an absolute menace. When his final delivery gets more consistent he is going to be a real class act. Pilks had a good game too.

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tettey for me, broke up play and helped yobo out a lot, the only bad thing he did today was have a shot from outside the box when he could have played hooper in or pass out wide. Apart from that, you could hardly notice him which is always a good thing in the centre of the park. For me BJ''s passing just wasn''t good enough today, a good player to have in the squad though definitely

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Yobo did well and certainly seemed to add a little steel to the defence

but agree Johnson works damn hard and deserves some credit

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Tettey for me, he seemed to always be in the thick of it and kept his concentration well. We''d be a few places higher if he hadn''t been injured.

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it was a genuine team performance with no sub standard efforts.

Tettey was my motm, defensively solid and misplaced what 3 passes all game; best bit was his efforts at organising and lifting the team, esp 20 mins into second half, real galvanising leadership and first time i have seen it from him

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I thought any of Bassong, Olsson, Tettey or Fer had a real good shout to be MOTM.

 

After them it''d be Ruddy.

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My MOTM was the person who sent that team out as motivated and organised as they were, whoever that was? Did we learn from Chelsea and leave it to the masseur?

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Tettey or Bradley for me. Tettey shoeee some leadership for tge first time but Johnsons been doing it for months.

I think Bradley Johnson is a contender for POTS so far...he would get my vote at this point

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Johnson had a poor start to the season but he''s a competitor and he''s worked hard for the team since he came back in. Credit to him for that.

 

But he wouldn''t be in our best midfield if Fer, Tettey and Howson were all fit.

 

POTS? Not a chance.

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[quote user="pablofarmer"]I''d like to add Ollson to the mix, thought he was outstanding today.[/quote]

This. Definitely. Probably our most consistent performer this season and should be in with a shout for the BB Trophy.

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[quote user="CANARYKING"]0 - 0 was 16/1 wasn''t a long queue at the bookies at the end.[/quote]I suppose, after the goalfests that have been recent Norwich v Man Citeh encounters, the chances were that a 0-0 would be on the cards at some time!Difficult to choose a MOTM . Bearing in mind it was his first game, and he is not fully match fit, Yobo just squeezes in for me.

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[quote user="lappinitup"]Johnson has consistently been one of our best performers this season Indy so why should he be dropped?[/quote]Simply because the other three main options are all better overall players than Johnson is IMHO.Tettey offers better defensive play whilst being able to make the necessary passes to a relevant teammate (rather than trying long balls he can''t manage or blazing shots into the stand instead).Fer also offers a lot of midfield presence, and he can also pass and offer a genuine goal threat when he advances as well.Howson doesn''t bring as much bite to the midfield (even if he still works very hard), but he''s far superior going forward and his linking play is also pretty strong (something we desperately need to create chances with).So put all the factors together and you have Tettey handling defensive duties, Fer offering the ball carrying and support skills and Howson providing the attacking threat - with Johnson on the bench as either cover for Tettey or to bring on if we want to try to protect a lead and play with two defensive mids.Don''t get me wrong, I think Johnson gives 100% every game and is fairly consistent - the problem is that he''s consistently average (with poor passing and loss of possession in many games) far too often...

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[quote user="GJP"]

Johnson had a poor start to the season but he''s a competitor and he''s worked hard for the team since he came back in. Credit to him for that.

 

But he wouldn''t be in our best midfield if Fer, Tettey and Howson were all fit.

 

POTS? Not a chance.

[/quote]
You might not think so. Others may disagree. I think he''s in for a shout.
As for he wouldn''t be in our midfield - i''d argue against that. The most regularly selected player in CM for both Hughton and Lambert suggests he probably would be.

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[quote user="hogesar"][quote user="GJP"]

Johnson had a poor start to the season but he''s a competitor and he''s worked hard for the team since he came back in. Credit to him for that.

 

But he wouldn''t be in our best midfield if Fer, Tettey and Howson were all fit.

 

POTS? Not a chance.

[/quote]
You might not think so. Others may disagree. I think he''s in for a shout.
As for he wouldn''t be in our midfield - i''d argue against that. The most regularly selected player in CM for both Hughton and Lambert suggests he probably would be.
[/quote]There is no doubt at all that , for a team like Norwich, playing at this level, a Bradley Johnson type player is essential . We''ll never be able to afford the sort of artisan midfield maestros that could deal with the top guys on a like for like basis. So we need someone who will break them up, and not be afraid to get their hands dirty in the process. That''s why he is regularly selectedBut the problem is that Bradders has a major flaw in his game...his passing. I think we all know it, so there''s no need to enlarge on this. I''m hoping that, if we are still in the Prem after May, a serious attempt can be made to secure a Bradders upgrade in the close season. Up till that time there will be games where Tetty or Fer are the better options, and, as others have said, when Howson is fit again, there will be a dilemma. But, I have to be honest, all things being equal, I do like the look of a Fer/Tettey/Howson combination overall.

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