Norwich and Cambridge’s Friday night bout at Abbey Stadium was a tad longer than usual, but it still amounted to three points. Then again, you could be a U’s fan and say the Canaries amassed four points from the 120-minute friendly. Either way, here’s five things learnt.
He scores when he wants
When Norwich announced forward Ricky van Wolfswinkel was going to be a second half starter, Twitter blew up. There’s a love-hate relationship with the Dutch international. Club record signing turns one-goal-a-season player destined for a way out of East England. And after a year in Ligue 1, it felt like ‘the Wolf’s’ time in Norfolk had ended. But manager Alex Neil gave him a chance, and van Wolswinkel scored two minutes after coming on, giving the visitor’s a 1-2 lead.
Which direction for the forwards
City CEO David McNally made it clear on Twitter that the newly promoted side weren’t actively shopping Gary Hooper. Cameron Jerome has shown promise as a forward this preseason, but was goalless tonight. Lewis Grabban has also shown some chances, as well as van Wolfswinkel now. City have an ample amount of forwards. If Neil can consistently produce goals from them, maybe another striker isn’t necessary—just a commodity.
‘Toffolo Soldier’
Harry Toffolo has gone from a left-back that has a slim chance to make the squad to becoming a solid shout for the team sheet. He was rewarded against Cambridge with a late goal to seal the match—on a ‘RVW’ assist. As long as Olsson is out, his chances increase for minutes. Toffolo, who was on loan at Swindon Town last season, has been one of the positive signs for Norwich this preseason. Let’s see how he does at camp in Germany.
Snuffing out the danger
Conceding a goal early is hardly ideal, but City did well to recover. Soon after the goal, a mistake from center-back Michael Turner and nearly an own goal from midfielder Louis Thompson could’ve seen the Canaries fighting a two-goal deficit. But play was consistent, preventing Cambridge from building momentum. A late penalty earned by Thompson set up Hooper for the equaliser. From there it was all yellow.
Building the club
Every match day I’m reminded how lethal our squad can be. Every off day I see how deadly other Premier League sides are becoming. With Hull’s Robbie Brady apparently rejecting a new contract with the Championship side, it looks like the Republic of Ireland international might come to Colney. If that happens, maybe the match days and off days will blend together in a positive way.
