I think Jonny Howson has a massive claim to be Norwich’s player of the season this year.
Many will say that Robbie Brady or maybe Mbokani should be given the honour, but I think that Jonny Howson has maybe been Norwich’s most consistent and probably best player so far this season.
Firstly, his goals. Howson has been lethal in front of goal for most of his Norwich career, notching an impressive 16 goals in his 4 years at Carrow Road. Howson is actually our joint top scorer this year with Hoolahan, Redmond and Mbokani, which not only tells you how good he’s been but also tells you a lot about what he’s had to work with…
The goals he’s scored for Norwich haven’t been that bad though have they? I mean you’ve got that peach of an effort that he scored against Stoke on that miserable evening in the Potteries, the tidy finish that he scored at home versus Villa and the fabulous (almost forgotten) finish against Ipswich in the playoff semi-final last year. The best one of them all has to be that amazing run against Manchester City in 2013. He seemingly ran past half the City team from the halfway line to tidyly put the ball past ‘keeper Joe Hart. He certainly doesn’t score many tap ins does he?
One thing you can’t fault about the Yorkshireman is his commitment and effort. I was one of the unfortunates who decided to watch Norwich travel to Aston Villa and suffer a humiliating defeat in the miserable rain. One small positive we could take away was Jonny’s performance. Even when Norwich were 2-0 down, and everything looked hopeless, Howson was still running with the ball forward and looked like only one of a few who actually gave a damn about trying to score. He created a chance late on for Mbokani to score, but the shot was saved by Mark Bunn.
Howson’s influence in games has been great so far, mainly when he’s put into the centre of midfield. This is why I think it’s been annoying the he’s been forced out wide for the majority of this season. Thanks to the sale (and loaning out) of Elliott Bennett, Norwich don’t have a natural right winger in the squad apart from Nathan Redmond, leading to Neil picking Howson as the one to play out wide. I still don’t understand his reasoning for it. He’s not quick enough to challenge the quality players at this level, with the modern day full back almost requiring a bucket load of pace. I also don’t know why you wouldn’t just play Redmond! I know he’s been on and off this season, with a number of standout performances and a number of less-than-great ones, but he’s still arguably one of Norwich’s standout stars, and you don’t win football matches without your best players on the pitch.
Therefore, Jonny has the potential to become one of Norwich’s standout performers for the remainder of the season. He certainly has the goals in his locker to help Norwich stay in the division, especially important when you consider that Norwich’s strikers have only got eight league goals between them. He also has the power to become a major influence from midfield. He only has the two assists so far, but he certainly has the ability to get more than that this season. Norwich’s midfield has certainly looked poorer when he’s forced out wide, especially at Villa, where the lack of communication between Gary O’Neil, Youssef Mulumbu and the defence was as clear as day.
If the worst case scenario happens and Norwich aren’t able to stay in the Premier League, I really really hope that keeping Howson is top of the agenda for Alex Neil (or whoever is in charge) as he really is an underrated asset for the club. Hence, why I believe he’s a top candidate for the Barry Butler Trophy this season. He’s not set the game alight every time he’s stepped out this season for sure, but he hardly ever has as bad a game that leads fans to say “Ugh, that Howson was ruddy awful today wasn’t he?”.
It might be a little early to start thinking about it, but hey, might be time to start his campaign.
#VoteJonny
