Norwich City are a Championship side. It’s time for the players and fans alike to accept as much.
Perhaps new boss Alex Neil’s fiery words criticising the lingering “superiority-complex” were a harsh blow to the Pride of Norfolk, but they’re words of honesty and necessity.
“A lot of people talking seem to live off that they played in the Premier League. But the bottom line is they’re not in the Premier League. They’re in the Championship. So the quicker we get used to that, the quicker we realise where we are, then hopefully the quicker we can turn it around and start pulling further up the table.”
It’s no secret Canary fans have believed throughout the campaign that their club is experiencing a year-long exile from the Premier League and will return to their rightful home come May. A lot of that belief is true.
City has the strongest and deepest roster of any team in the second-tier. They have the most money, which they’ve had no problem holding onto throughout both transfer windows. They also have a supporters group that fills their seating allocations better than anyone in the league. But they’re still in the Championship.
Disagree? Well, look at the players brought in during summer transfer window.
In America, we use the term “journeyman” to describe players such as forward Cameron Jerome. A journeyman who has been around, bursting with experience, but he’s never really performed at a place where his spot on the team sheet has been locked in with regularity. Centre-backs Jos Hooiveld (whose contract was recently terminated) and Carlos Cuellar also fit that description.
And then there were the guys purchased solely for their abilities to thrive in Championship football, if they haven’t already. Gary O’Neil, who was picked up on a free transfer, helped his two previous clubs West Ham and Queens Park Rangers fight for, and eventually gain promotion.
Lewis Grabban tallied 22 goals in 44 appearances last season with Bournemouth, and left the Cherries as their record sale. Northern Ireland-international Kyle Lafferty joined Norwich after a spell in Italy’s Serie B with Palermo, where he had 11 goals in 35 matches and the team finished the season with promotion.
These were purchases of players who know how to fight in the combative and arduous second-tier, and had found success in the past. Norwich were buying players they felt could guide their team back where they thought they belonged.
Realistically, how many of these transfers would’ve been negotiated had City stayed up?
Barring Conor McGrandles and Ignasi Miquel, who are young and have scarcely found minutes with first team, Vadis Odjidja-Ofoe is arguably the only player purchased capable of making a reasonable amount of Premier League rosters. Then again, the Belgian has been plagued with injuries, just like the player he was supposed to replace, Leroy Fer.
Life in the Championship has been harder than fans and players thought it would be. Neil’s comments aren’t an attack as the establishment; they’re an observation and reality that have largely been ignored.
If Norwich City true believe they ought to belong back in the Premier League, it’s time for their performances to reflect it. Good thing it’s the end of January and not the beginning of May.
