Norwich City will be judged on different stages
Mark Bunn demonstrated his courage on several occasions, no more so than when saving at the feet of Robin van Persie. Picture: Paul Chesterton / Focus Images
Paddy Davitt
Monday, March 4, 2013
11:01 AM
Norwich City suffered a brutal reminder at Old Trafford of their place in the Premier League hierarchy.
Whether they deserved the scale of the beating dispensed is largely irrelevant. Manchester United have better players. United’s ambitions this and every other season will always far outstrip those of the Canaries. The financial resources and the global fan base elevate them onto a completely different plane; they are two clubs spinning on vastly different axes who meet twice a campaign in the current climate.
The emotional outpouring that greeted Norwich’s Carrow Road league win over a superior foe earlier this season and the historical nature of that victory serve merely to underline the chasm – not offer a justification for those who question why the Canaries failed to come anywhere near a repeat. It is not defeatist to state as such; it is a realistic appraisal of the relative achievements of clubs operating at different ends of the Premier League spectrum.
Norwich’s success story right now is defined by their ability to visit Old Trafford and all the other elite outposts across the top flight. Not in their ability to upset the odds for a second time and emulate what only Tottenham had managed in a season of masterful domestic superiority from United.
That steady rate of progression may have its critics who urge Norwich to raise their collective sights and aim for more than merely the status quo and another shot at being mauled in Manchester next season. It is also hardly consolation for the thousands who will have spent time and money making this pilgrimage to Old Trafford. Or Anfield. Or Stamford Bridge. What they saw again is what they already perhaps knew. Norwich City is a side of honest players with a fantastic team spirit and an experienced manager who continues to extract the maximum from his resources. For anyone who thinks differently take a look at the current Premier League standings. What Norwich faced at the Theatre of Dreams was an amalgam of world class talent, years of top flight experience and precocious youth.
Norwich went with the game plan that earned them a landmark win over the Reds in Norfolk and for 75 minutes it had travelled north in robust fashion. United enjoyed almost total control of the ball and territory but City were again resolutely disciplined in front of Mark Bunn; breached only once in the closing seconds of the opening period when Robin van Persie anticipated the trajectory of Antonio Valencia’s cross a shade quicker than Sebastien Bassong to divert the ball into the path of Shinji Kagawa who stabbed between Bunn and his near post.
Given the array of stars in a powerful home line-up it was a sour way for City to concede. Both in creation and execution it owed plenty to Norwich’s collective failure to sense danger. Something they had impressively retained for the duration of the opening period. The visitors had denied United space to raid down the flanks in a reprise of that suffocating pressure they successfully exerted earlier in the season. Anthony Pilkington and Robert Snodgrass were again deployed as auxiliary defenders in front of their full-backs, yet it took just one brief aberration from Pilkington to allow Valencia an opportunity to deliver for the opener.
Bradley Johnson and Jonny Howson had erected a road block in front of Bassong and Michael Turner that invited United to probe centrally where City could swarm and over-populate the pockets of space available in front of their back four. Wayne Rooney and van Persie’s telepathy inevitably delivered an antidote at times, but Bunn was a brave last line or City’s defence made vital interventions.
This was no onslaught in the mould of Liverpool or Chelsea. Norwich exhibited an assured degree of control that belied the majesty of their surroundings. There were even the stirrings of a sporadic threat to finally test David De Gea early in the second stanza with United’s victory still far from certain. But Norwich’s obduracy was met with fresh reserves of patience. United face this type of conundrum most weeks. The sight of double player-of-the-year van Persie being withdrawn ahead of Real Madrid’s Champions League visit may have appeared a pyrrhic victory for the Canaries. In reality, it merely sealed their downfall. Rooney became the focal point supported by Kagawa who was re-deployed into the space vacated by the Englishman.
It was a masterstroke from Sir Alex Ferguson. Johnson and Howson now had the Japanese playmaker for company along with Michael Carrick and Anderson. Danny Welbeck injected pace and direction from the flanks to torment a visiting outfit that was starting to exhibit distress signals despite the introductions of Kei Kamara and Elliott Bennett.
United’s dominance in the final 15 minutes bordered on cruelty. Visibly tiring from the scale of their exertions, copious space and time was now afforded the Reds as City shed their defensive strictures in a vain bid to try and grab a lifeline at the opposite end.
Those restrictive, claustrophobic pockets of space offered up in the first half had become gaping holes. Rooney’s movement bisected Turner and Bassong before the Parisian was exposed in graphic fashion and Kagawa dismissively rolled Ferguson’s side into the comfort zone.The former Borussia Dortmund midfielder then escaped detection again when he ran off the back of City’s central midfield two to lift a composed clip over the grounded Bunn. Rooney’s fearsome fourth was every bit as emphatic as United had been from start to finish.
Perhaps not in their fabled potency in front of goal – despite the final flattering scoreline – but in the measure of how they had controlled this latest Premier League test on the way to surely dethroning their neighbours.
United remain the gold standard; a bastion of enduring excellence and a fitting tribute to Ferguson’s greatness as a manager.
Norwich never remotely threatened to tame the Red Devils as they had in the corresponding fixture. But Manchester United is not the Premier League benchmark for City. That will be gauged in their success at edging out the likes of Southampton, Reading and Wigan over the course of nine gruelling months.
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17 comments
It certainly has, Swiss. Yet he seemed such a "must get" at the time. Hoots is so inscrutable, there may yet be something going on. Clutching at straws here, perhaps? There will have to be a mass exodus from our milieu of midfielders come midsummer.
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Mad Brewer
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
Butter-who? It's all gone quite quiet on that front.
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Swiss Canary
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
Not the case Pa. Despite all young Goreham`s hysterical burblings, it was pretty obvious to me, even listening in Black & White, that City were not in it as potential winners. Just damage limiters. I am having another go at cracking "wiziwig" on Saturday - had more advice to back up Stew`s tutorial, for which I am grateful! Reference a midfielder with attacking threat - is that why we acquired Butterfield? I often wonder.
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Mad Brewer
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
I think that Chrs Goreham is just a standard English football journalist. They see their job as bigging up their team, nothing wrong with that. It can of course get a bit silly, John Terry as the "world's greatest defender" for instance and of course England would have won the World Cup if only the referee had allowed Lampard's goal.
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DocOhNo
Monday, March 4, 2013
So Pa would like Chris Goreham to sound miserable all the time. Villa playing one up front tonight. mmmm
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sharky
Monday, March 4, 2013
The 10 game unbeaten streak had Whittaker in the line-up . Put him back in and have Russell Martin in mid-field in lieu of Jonny Howson who gives away possession too cheaply too often .After his display against Everton why wasn't Kei Kamara brought on much sooner against Man.utd
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canadiancanary
Monday, March 4, 2013
….Pa..You know and I know that as soon as a story recieves critisism of Citys failings, weak comments are made by the numerous reporters at Archant and the main story gets pushed OFF the page! Plenty of out of date rubbish remains though!.....
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Stew Pydsodd
Monday, March 4, 2013
I had been coming to the same conclusion as Walcor, that despite us having a lot of midfielders on the books, if we are relying on breakaways from a defensive formation for most of our goals then it would be worth finding a hot-dog midfielder with a good scoring record for next season. Of course those guys are hard to find and expensive.
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Swiss Canary
Monday, March 4, 2013
Spent all weekend being ill , knew nothing of the game on Saturday to be honest I don't really remember Saturday at all . From what I've read ( haven't seen any highlights either ) it was a game to forget about , in fact a whole wk end to forget about ! 3 points against The Saints on Saturday will do for me .
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mjc75
Monday, March 4, 2013
If you had seen the match Brew, rather than listen to Radio Goreham you may have a slightly different opinion. That man gets so excited if a Norwich player touches the ball, and gives the impression we are about to score.... At times ,especially in the second half we had resorted to 10 men behind the ball with Wes as our front ' striker'. That poor beggar spent most of his time making 50yard sprints back and forth in a forlorn hope of achieving something. Can't wonder he was knackered when he was taken off... I am well aware that the Norwich management do not read these postings, and will do things their way at all costs. - BUT- Can some one tell me why we need a 10man defence (7 should be ample)at the expense of an attacking option.
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Pa Snipps
Monday, March 4, 2013
MoTD did not show the best Norwich chance in the first few minutes of the match when Johnson hit a terrible cross over the bar with Holt waiting for a pass. It is indicative of Norwich attacking ambition that the next best chance fell to Russell Martin when Holt headed back from the far post. Why was there no midfield player in the six yard box? Norwich are actually playing 8-1-1. However who can criticise a mauling at Old Trafford and the lads did well for an hour or so. We need a midfield player who can score goals from open play for next year.
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waclor
Monday, March 4, 2013
MoTD did not show the best Norwich chance in the first few minutes of the match when Johnson hit a terrible cross over the bar with Holt waiting for a pass. It is indicative of Norwich attacking ambition that the next best chance fell to Russell Martin when Holt headed back from the far post. Why was there no midfield player in the six yard box? Norwich are actually playing 8-1-1. However who can criticise a mauling at Old Trafford and the lads did well for an hour or so. We need a midfield player who can score goals from open play for next year.
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waclor
Monday, March 4, 2013
I wonder how it might have panned out had we not conceded just before half-time, Grumpy? Suspect we would have still lost but maybe not by 4? Johnson & Howson seemed to tire late in the game. 8 more points.......
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Mad Brewer
Monday, March 4, 2013
The scoreline was not quite a true reflection of the game.City defended extremely well for 75 minutes but all four goals were the result of woeful bad defending by Howson and Johnson.
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Grumpy
Monday, March 4, 2013
I find the comparison with Wigan`s 0-4 defeat by Liverpool interesting. Wigan had as many shots on target as Liverpool did, and Reina had to make some top saves. Norwich did not muster a single attempt on goal vs MU. It is a truism, of sorts, to say we will be judged on `different stages`. Surely 8 more points is on? We have a run-in that includes 4 of the bottom teams. So far, we`ve drawn with Villa, Reading & Soton, beat Wigan. Oh, and we drew twice with QPR. So we are certainly due to `upstage` the likes of Villa, Soton & Reading this time round?
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Mad Brewer
Monday, March 4, 2013
Totally agree with the sentiments of PD here. As an overses supporter I rarely get to Carrow Road, but I was fortunate enough to witness the 1-0 home victory against United - that is probably as good as it gets for any Norwich supporter ! Yes, we were, as City supporters disappointed with the 4-0 scoreline on Saturday. Had we perhaps lost by just a single goal, we may have felt we did ourselves proud. The scoreline seemed unjust, but perhaps it just emphasizes the difference between Norwich city and one of the PL giants today. Never mind, our sole objective is to hold onto our PL status and we have probably achieved 85% of our goal as of this stage of the season. Now let us focus on the next two massive games that can play a big role in getting us 'across the line'. I have every confidence that our team will deliver. It is our job to get behind the side and give them our full support ! This season is another milestone and, if we stay up (which I am sure we will) it will crown the fourth glorious season of our renaissance. OTBC
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Dubai Canary
Monday, March 4, 2013
It's certainly had its bloopers this season, what with losing to Luton and now a game with no shots recorded, but on the other hand, we have beaten Man U and Arsenal this season, so it has had its highs as well. Couple more wins and we're there I think. OTBC!
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LittleYellowBirdie
Monday, March 4, 2013