Norwich pre match chat

[Cjay]

Here we go again.

Can we rescue our collapsing season starting with a win vs Norwich?

Would a draw be a good result?

Beaten them twice already.

The only playoff side we have beaten in fact, can the lads pull themselves together and do it again?

Not exactly had a roaring end to the season themselves, 9 points from last 6.

Better than us admittedly but not saying much given we are bottom 3.

More concerningly over the last 12 they are the 4th best performing side and the 2nd best home side in the league for the last 8.

4th best home team in the league this season in fact Norwich.

Safe to say they are a better home side than an away one this season (19th in the away table).

So maybe a draw away take them back to Elland Road 2nd leg not an awful result? All be it for confidence we probably need a win and most importantly a good performance?

Got good players.

Gabriel Sara is Premier League bound you'd think, 13 goals and 12 assists from the midfielder.

Josh Sargent managed 15 goals and more impressive the best minutes to goal ratio in the league bar Jamie Vardy (goal every 116 minutes).

But defensively not the best, 60+ goals conceded puts them well down in that particular table.

Is Farke going to make changes?

We've also made it onto the Norwich forum (maybe they'd like to join our pity party)

https://forum.pinkun.com/index.php?/top ... /#comments

If we play to our best we beat them, thats fair, but do we have that in us now?

Should we finally see Amps back in midfield? Can we keep pushing Georgie long since it worked? Has Piroe earned his chance again after a decent performance vs Southampton?

Incidentally the last team to do the double over a side in the league season and lose the playoffs to the same team? Us . . . Derby.

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[Irish Ian]

Big game,

I was toying with the idea of keeping Amps as CB but playing Archie as a centre creative mid. He certainly has the attributes and in my opinion is a big game player.

Something like this:



I am working on the premise that Rutter will not be available but Jimmy and Bamford will be.
Say what you like about Bamford but he knows how to occupy the opposition and not allow them to settle.

Could Archie play as a quasi 10 if he has the support of two pacy wingers and a busy CF?

I was also thinking about Meslier, I am not saying he needs dropped at this point but if we get into a penalty shootout he has shown nothing in the past to make me think he can make it hard for their penalty takers, he usually just falls on his arse. I only recall on time when he ever came close to saving a pen and that was away to Wolves four seasons ago, and he still conceded the rebound. So sub him come the penalty shootout please.

I dont think a draw is a good result at this point, we need a statement performance.

[Scoobychief]

Big game,

I was toying with the idea of keeping Amps as CB but playing Archie as a centre creative mid. He certainly has the attributes and in my opinion is a big game player.

Something like this:



I am working on the premise that Rutter will not be available but Jimmy and Bamford will be.
Say what you like about Bamford but he knows how to occupy the opposition and not allow them to settle.

Could Archie play as a quasi 10 if he has the support of two pacy wingers and a busy CF?

I was also thinking about Meslier, I am not saying he needs dropped at this point but if we get into a penalty shootout he has shown nothing in the past to make me think he can make it hard for their penalty takers, he usually just falls on his arse. I only recall on time when he ever came close to saving a pen and that was away to Wolves four seasons ago, and he still conceded the rebound. So sub him come the penalty shootout please.

I dont think a draw is a good result at this point, we need a statement performance.

f**k Farke let get Irish Ian in as new Manager. He'll get us up

[Phild]

Easy
Let’s park the bus!!!!!

[Leeds1000]

I find it strange that i am calling for this but Amps back into Midfield and the old stalwart Coops back in at CB. He might run in treacle but we need something else in defence at the minute. He's a menace at set-pieces aswell. Byram over that side with hopefully Roberts but if not Archie on the other.

We should have enough going forward but defensively we look shot.

[Sean_Nile]

From reading the Norwich forum it is apparent that the Norwich fans still hold Farkecin high regard and are completely bemused that some Leeds fans are calling for his removal even though gaining 90 points.

They see Sara and Sargent as being the main threat and are not averse to hoof ball to get goals as they see it was worked for other teams in the past, and they look to exploit the wings.

They view their defence as their main weekness and hope for a win at Carrow road and then the tactics will be to park the bus at ER. They hope that the fans disatisfaction with Farke will manifest itself at ER and this will make it easier for their team to play.

They concede that Leeds are the better team, but form wise they have been the best team in the run ins, the rest of the teams have limped over the line.

One fan got trounced for speaking too highly of Leeds heritage.

[danhirons]

From reading the Norwich forum it is apparent that the Norwich fans still hold Farkecin high regard and are completely bemused that some Leeds fans are calling for his removal even though gaining 90 points.

They see Sara and Sargent as being the main threat and are not averse to hoof ball to get goals as they see it was worked for other teams in the past, and they look to exploit the wings.

They view their defence as their main weekness and hope for a win at Carrow road and then the tactics will be to park the bus at ER. They hope that the fans disatisfaction with Farke will manifest itself at ER and this will make it easier for their team to play.

They concede that Leeds are the better team, but form wise they have been the best team in the run ins, the rest of the teams have limped over the line.

One fan got trounced for speaking too highly of Leeds heritage.

probably because he got norwich promoted twice and got 90 points this season (only 3 less than under bielsa)

[Cjay]

probably because he got norwich promoted twice and got 90 points this season (only 3 less than under bielsa)

Tbf only 1 of them had parachute payment squads for 3 of the 4 seasons down here.

And despite that 1 of them has a better overall Championship points per game (it isn't Farke).

[danhirons]

Tbf only 1 of them had parachute payment squads for 3 of the 4 seasons down here.

And despite that 1 of them has a better overall Championship points per game (it isn't Farke).

Not saying he did better than bielsa, just saying he's not far off

Plus bielsa didn't have a mad Leicester team to deal with. Championship that season under bielsa when we went up was far weaker than this year

[Broad Ford]

I find it strange that i am calling for this but Amps back into Midfield and the old stalwart Coops back in at CB. He might run in treacle but we need something else in defence at the minute. He's a menace at set-pieces aswell. Byram over that side with hopefully Roberts but if not Archie on the other.

We should have enough going forward but defensively we look shot.

I'm also pondering captain Cooper martialing the back line with Amps into midfield. More importantly players need to be played in their favoured positions.

Lastly, keeping Gnonto on the right for longer will prevent the Norwich defence from ganging up on Jimmy down the left.

[Clacton White]

Not saying he did better than bielsa, just saying he's not far off

Plus bielsa didn't have a mad Leicester team to deal with. Championship that season under bielsa when we went up was far weaker than this year

It's funny but I see that season differently , I think the championship has got progressively weaker , that 4 teams all have a total points finish that could easily be top 2 any other season shows to me the overall standard is weaker.....3 of those teams being ones that have just come down , where you may expect one of those to not do so well . The 3 that went up to PL look like all coming straight back to, again showing that this division is falling behind even the lower reaches of the PL......I guess though it's how we look at things , I just think without the bad start and absolutely dire finish , Leeds could easily have avoided play off scenario. OK , the start was a mess with players wanting out and rocking the boat , I guess Farke didn't know what sort of squad it would be etc....the end though was a s**t show .

[whiteinfrance]

Although a win would be lovely , a draw on sunday will do nicely

[WhiteRose]

The team is shot and so am I to be honest, it’s been an exhausting and intense season from the off, all the behind the scenes stuff with players wanting to leave and then the pressure to win just about every game since October.

Hopefully they can regroup over this week and rediscover some defensive solidity and we can build from there. I hear the calls for cooper but I really wouldn’t risk it at this moment in time.

[weasel]

The team is shot and so am I to be honest, it’s been an exhausting and intense season from the off, all the behind the scenes stuff with players wanting to leave and then the pressure to win just about every game since October.

Hopefully they can regroup over this week and rediscover some defensive solidity and we can build from there. I hear the calls for cooper but I really wouldn’t risk it at this moment in time.

Me neither. I think if everyone is fit then the team more or less picks itself and that is the team that went on the winng run. Get the defensive solidity back and play the way we did, the cautious way whilst not gving anything away. We have the quality to score out of nothing so if we don't let the opposition score we are capable of winning. We don't need to force anything, we don't need to win in the 90 minutes so we play our way.

GK Messlier
RB Gray
LB Firpo
CB AMpadu and Rodon
CM Kamara and Gruev
LW Sumerville
RW James
10 Rutter
9 Bamford

The only real decisions would be:
Firpo or Byram. I would go for Firpo because of the attacking threat he offers
James or Gnonto. I would go for James because unlike Gnonto he doesn't disappear in games and his pace is such a threat enabling us to play the long ball on occasion, or simply to turn a clearance into a threat. Gnonto is probably the better finisher but doesnt keep his position as well as James does.
Bamford/Piroe. A tough one here as I would rather have Piroe on the end of a chance but Bamford does seem to suit the way we play more, especially when James is in the team as James looks to play crosses in for Bamford.

[WhiteRose]

Me neither. I think if everyone is fit then the team more or less picks itself and that is the team that went on the winng run. Get the defensive solidity back and play the way we did, the cautious way whilst not gving anything away. We have the quality to score out of nothing so if we don't let the opposition score we are capable of winning. We don't need to force anything, we don't need to win in the 90 minutes so we play our way.

GK Messlier
RB Gray
LB Firpo
CB AMpadu and Rodon
CM Kamara and Gruev
LW Sumerville
RW James
10 Rutter
9 Bamford

The only real decisions would be:
Firpo or Byram. I would go for Firpo because of the attacking threat he offers
James or Gnonto. I would go for James because unlike Gnonto he doesn't disappear in games and his pace is such a threat enabling us to play the long ball on occasion, or simply to turn a clearance into a threat. Gnonto is probably the better finisher but doesnt keep his position as well as James does.
Bamford/Piroe. A tough one here as I would rather have Piroe on the end of a chance but Bamford does seem to suit the way we play more, especially when James is in the team as James looks to play crosses in for Bamford.

We are of a similar mind on this but id make the most of Roberts experience and character and have him at right back and have grey in the bench or perhaps in a more advanced midfield role.

[DDB220]

I'm also pondering captain Cooper martialing the back line with Amps into midfield. More importantly players need to be played in their favoured positions.

Lastly, keeping Gnonto on the right for longer will prevent the Norwich defence from ganging up on Jimmy down the left.

Huge call bringing in Cooper now. He hasn’t played since the cup tie with Chelsea. Realistically a Cooper / Firpo combination on the left side of the defence is a bit worrying. So then you are taking Firpo out ? This means changing two of the back 4. A back 4 which was a significant element of our 13/14 wins - that is a huge call.
For me Cooper should have been utilised earlier, I personally think that bus has gone at this stage of the season.

IMO the midfield is our biggest issue, because the way we set up is all about control and we have certainly struggled to impose ourselves by dominating possession for the last 5/6 games. It would be interesting to see where on the pitch most of our possession has occurred. It would not surprise me if it has been in our defensive 3rd.

There are huge selection issues for DF ahead of our next game. Stick or twist ?

[Broad Ford]

Huge call bringing in Cooper now. He hasn’t played since the cup tie with Chelsea. Realistically a Cooper / Firpo combination on the left side of the defence is a bit worrying. So then you are taking Firpo out ? This means changing two of the back 4. A back 4 which was a significant element of our 13/14 wins - that is a huge call.
For me Cooper should have been utilised earlier, I personally think that bus has gone at this stage of the season.

IMO the midfield is our biggest issue, because the way we set up is all about control and we have certainly struggled to impose ourselves by dominating possession for the last 5/6 games. It would be interesting to see where on the pitch most of our possession has occurred. It would not surprise me if it has been in our defensive 3rd.

There are huge selection issues for DF ahead of our next game. Stick or twist ?

Cooper is a big call, but leadership is needed at the back. Amps then takes up a more familiar position in midfield. I'd have Firpo not attacking too far forward as we need him to defend. This controlling in the defensive 3rd hasn't delivered the results needed nor the excitement of fast attacking football. I'd much rather see Amps controlling the midfield and playing the ball to the wingers with Bamford pulling defenders out of position creating space.

I wouldn't stick with the current set up. I'd twist and try something different without compromising an organised backline. The rearguard keeping a clean sheet and taking a 1 goal lead into the home leg could build up the confidence Leeds United need to qualify for the final.

[Phild]

The argument to keep Firpo in for his attacking contribution is mind blowing.
He is a defender that cannot defend and is targeted every game.
We have to stop conceding as many before we think about the top end of the field

[Chilli D]

The argument to keep Firpo in for his attacking contribution is mind blowing.
He is a defender that cannot defend and is targeted every game.
We have to stop conceding as many before we think about the top end of the field

I agree.
Firpo would be more suited to the home leg when we're expected to be more attack minded.
I'd play Roberts at RB and Byram at LB and keep Rodon and Ampadu together.
I understand people calling for Cooper for his experience but his legs have gone imo. He looked like he was running in treacle against Chelsea. Admittedly he does pose more of a threat from corners than the other two but that's not enough for me to want him in the team.

[DDB220]

I agree.
Firpo would be more suited to the home leg when we're expected to be more attack minded.
I'd play Roberts at RB and Byram at LB and keep Rodon and Ampadu together.
I understand people calling for Cooper for his experience but his legs have gone imo. He looked like he was running in treacle against Chelsea. Admittedly he does pose more of a threat from corners than the other two but that's not enough for me to want him in the team.

I am not adverse to Cooper in the back line, as we need Amps in midfield to generate a better outlet when playing out and with his ability to break from midfield it will provide forward momentum. But Coops and Firpo is unlikely to work. Therefore your FB suggestions make sense.
I would also pair Gray with Amps. This is our best midfield combo. If Piroe is playing at 10, which is a possibility having more dynamism behind him is essential for me.
Geo at 10 also had his best games with Amps and Gray behind him IMO.