Tonight will bring the Canaries’ second evening game of the season, and it’s one where the boys will certainly be looking to improve upon their last twilight outing. That match was of course a 1-1 draw against a Bournemouth side who, despite their rigid defensive line, Norwich should’ve been able to break down on more than the one occasion we did. Since then, the lads have only won 3 of their last 7 games – hardly title winning form. That said, we’ll run out tonight 4th in the table and in theory we’re only a 2-0 win from regaining the top spot. Granted, we haven’t secured all three points in any of our last three games, but neither have Leeds in their last four.
Coming into this fixture, Norwich will be without some of their key players, most notably and recently, Wes Hoolahan who suffered an ankle injury against Fulham – the extent of which is still unclear. In addition, both Jos Hooiveld and Kyle Lafferty (both knee injuries) are doubts but neither will be out long term. Moreover, Mark Bunn and Ryan Bennett are still on the path to recovery from their respective surgery but we’re informed by the club that they’re both making excellent progress.
One of the few criticisms which people have made of Adams is what some perceive to be a stubbornness to change the tactics and to rotate the squad when required. However, with Hoolahan definitely out for this game he’ll be forced to do exactly that. I’d like to see something along the lines of this for our starting XI:
My starting XI:
I’ve gone with four changes from our last outing, something which I doubt Adams will do but considering the performances of certain players recently I feel that they need a rest. I’ve said this time and time again, I don’t like Whittaker and I’m astounded at the amount of Norwich fans that defend him – although maybe that’s because he can’t defend himself, who knows… For this reason, I’d opt for Martin at RB and since Jos is injured, why not give Miquel a start? For anyone that didn’t watch our 3-1 victory over Spurs in our last U21 match he was phenomenal and was named MoTM for his efforts. For me, when you’ve got a player in that sort of form, with Championship experience and the unfaltering hunger to play that youth brings (*cough* Raheem Sterling *cough) then he surely has to feature when the chance arises.
I’d also drop Johnson, which may seem harsh because he did have a sensational start to the season but I feel like it’s petering out somewhat now – primarily due to him having played every game thus far this season, coupled with the ‘engine room’ work rate that Adams demands of him. There’s nothing wrong with either of those things, but you have to rest players like that every so often. An added bonus of this is that it would pave the way for the arrival of Vadis Odjidja-Ofoe in the starting line-up – a player who I’m hugely excited to see and believe will add a new dynamic to the middle of our park. I can’t see anyone other than Howson as a straight swap for Hoolahan. He’s excelled every time he’s run out onto the pitch and is more than deserving of a shot tonight. Finally, and much similar a situation to Johnson’s, I’d drop Grabban in favour of Hooper. He started the season out with some scintillating performances, but they’ve dulled somewhat in recent weeks and it seems an appropriate time for him to start a game on the bench.
Verdict:
This stands to be a fiery contest for both teams and should prove engaging viewing for spectators. Both clubs are steeped in history, and due to Leeds being one of our primary feeder, somewhat of a rivalry has already been forged. Neither side have had an especially good run of late, but I’m still confident of a Norwich win providing that we rotate the squad where necessary. I’m going for 3-1 to the home side.
