Without attempting to sensationalise or even to skirt round the issue, this Saturday’s game is in the minds of many supporters the most significant of the campaign so far. Why do both they and I make this assertion? Because the late 2-1 defeat against Nottingham Forest in the Canaries last outing before the international break demonstrated the first tabular evidence that we were in trouble. It’s no secret that Norwich’s performances have been poor for a number of months now, but this is the first time our position in the table (10th) has reflected this ineptitude on the pitch. This has inevitably led to criticism of the managerial fledgling, Neil Adams who, at least for now, stands at the helm of our senior squad. While I’m far from being a supporter of the ‘Adams out’ brigade, I’m in the minority – as indicated by a recent poll conducted on Read Norwich Twitter. Many fans have taken what is admittedly a pretty solid line that we have one of, if not the best squad in the league and therefore the fact we’re not topping the league is down majorly to the efforts of Adams. This argument appears to have struck a cord with the board, prompting the appointment of the legendary Mike Phelan to be Adams’ second in command – although many fans are already speculating that he’ll capture the manager’s job within a few months. Regardless, he won’t officially be setting about his work until Wednesday when he begins his role overseeing training at Colney.
On to our encounter with Brighton then, this is a match which is expected to prove a tough test. The Finnish international Sami Hyypiä will be at the helm for the away side, a player who based on his defensive prowess at Liverpool during his career will ensure that his side prove challenging to overcome at the back – something which is far from ideal given the Yellows’ relative goal drought in recent weeks.
Post international break, there are no fresh injuries to those who aren’t already out (Bunn, R. Bennett, Odjidja-Ofoe and Hoolahan). Olsson and Tettey are both slight doubts, both his minor knee injuries so it depends whether Adams feels they should be risked or not, and of course Norwich will be without Elliott Bennett who’s on loan at the opposition club for a month as part of what’s believed to be a fitness loan. With that said, I would opt for a starting XI resembling something close to this:
Predicted line up
This line up is presuming that both Olsson and Tettey are unavailable due to the risk of exacerbating their injuries. Were this to be the case, I’d have Garrido and Johnson step in to form part of a solid side with the ability to dominate the middle of the park – which boasting a resilient back line and pace at the top of the park.
Verdict
For some reason I’ve got an inkling that this outing is going to go well for us. Without wanting to sound annoyingly cheerful, the laws of equal averages would dictate that we’re in line for some success in the league soon given our poor run as a result of the last few matches. Perhaps the combination of the players having had time to rest over the international break, the mounting pressure on Adams to deliver and the appointment of Phelan will prove to be all the ingredients necessary to a recipe for success this weekend. I’m going for 2-0 to Norwich.
