Norwich Season Review

If I had to describe this season in one phrase it would be this: “all about staying up”. With the financial incentives on offer for teams in the top flight of English football it is important that Norwich City stay in the premier league this season. I realise that there are 4 more games to go but I’d like to give my opinion on how Norwich got on in their 34 games.

 

The season started terribly for the Canaries. The first 7 games went by without the club picking up a win. A 5-0 hammering at Fulham didn’t exactly help the nerves of Norwich fans that had only a few months before seen their manager leave for another club and influential club captain Grant Holt hand in a transfer request- but stay after signing a new improved deal.

The only decent result in the first 7 games was a 1-1 draw at Tottenham Hotspur at the start of September. I was at the game and Norwich were comfortable until the introduction of Moussa Dembele (who came on for Sandro) at the start of the second half. The Belgian midfielder put the hosts into the lead with their best chance of the game and it took a Robert Snodgrass shot from a Grant Holt knockdown to get Norwich the least their play had deserved.

Norwich took 3 points from the opening 7 games which just wasn’t good enough for a team that was thought to be at threat from “second season syndrome”.

Ironically it was a match against the second Premier League team in North London which kick started the best run of Norwich’s season. A 1-0 win at home to Arsenal was much needed and lead to a 10 game unbeaten run which included wins at home to Stoke, Manchester United, Sunderland, and Wigan Athletic and a memorable 4-3 triumph at Swansea City. Added into the 10 game run which meant that Barcelona were in better over-all form were draws away at Everton, Southampton, Aston Villa and Reading.

 

Nothing can last forever and it was no surprise that the unbeaten run soon came crashing to an end. Norwich went out of the league cup after losing 4-1 at home to Aston Villa 4 days before the home win against Aston Villa. The first game after the 10 games had started so well with City taking a 1-0 lead at WBA in the first half but unfortunately the Baggies equalised deep into the same half and then went on to win the game by 2 goals to one. Further defeats at home to Chelsea and Man City and then a cruel loss away at West Ham meant that Norwich were 12^th and on 25 points after 21 games.

Norwich didn’t win a single league game in January with the club registering a couple of draws at home against Newcastle (0-0) and Tottenham (1-1) and a heavy 5-0 defeat away at Liverpool. It wasn’t until a late late Grant Holt winner against Everton at home in February that the winning feeling returned to Carrow Road. The late winner meant a lot to Norwich because the gap between them and the bottom 3 had slowly started to close but the winner which came in the last kick of the game took City onto 32 points.

 

March was a tough month with defeats at champions elect Man United and Wigan and two draws- 0-0 at home to Southampton and a controversial 1-1 draw in the North East at Sunderland. Sunderland away was the main talking point because, after Kei Kamara (who had signed from Kansas City in the MLS on loan) had headed the ball into the path of midfielder Wes Hoolahan who gave Norwich the lead. It was all going so well until referee Chris Foy judged that goalkeeper Mark Bunn had handled the ball outside the area and sent him off. Sunderland got back into the game when the linesman judged that centre half Sebastien Bassong had handled the ball into the area and gave a penalty kick to the hosts. Craig Gardner tucked the ball away into the net and even though the visitors should have had a penalty after full back Danny Rose handled the ball in the box a point was deserved and most welcome in the ever intensifying relegation fight.

April is always a tense month in football with the title and relegation places starting to get sorted. A 2-2 draw at home to Swansea maintained the 4 point gap between Norwich and the bottom 3 before an unlucky defeat at Arsenal.

 

It had all started so well at The Emirates with The Canaries going in level at half time and when Michael Turner scored from a Robert Snodgrass free kick the away fans were in dream land amidst hope that a famous victory could have been on the cards. Richard West thought otherwise. The linesman gave a penalty for Arsenal’s equaliser despite the referee allowing play to continue and completely missed Bassong getting fouled in the build-up to the second. Mr West also decided to completely miss the fact that fullback Steven Whittaker was fouled and that the ball was passed to an offside Theo Walcott for the third and final goal.

 

Reading at home was the 34^th game of the season and it had been built up by the local media as a “must win game” so it was a good job Norwich got the 3 points! A 2 minute cameo which saw Ryan Bennett and Elliott Bennett score one each put Norwich into a comfortable position with half an hour remaining. The Royals pulled a goal back with 20 minutes left but thankfully Norwich held on.

With 4 games to go Norwich look a though they’re going to be fine this year- especially with the 7 point gap between them and the bottom three.

 

This year is all about staying up.

 

Samir Osman