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"Chemical Kenny" ACN Pod 121
1.1k Plays1 year ago
Norwich are unbeaten, the boys are feeling positive, we've got guarantees for Rotherham (a), risky real time transfer deadline coverage and a few listener questions. Features the first conker chat in over 120 episodes.
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Transcript
Podcast Introduction
00:00:22
Speaker
Welcome to the Long Come Knowledge Podcast, an unrelentingly unreliable narrative, understanding the unnatural and unnerving reality of underestimated knowledge being unbeaten in early September. Pun and I are undertaking the unthinkable, recording a pod halfway through transfer deadline day. So even more than usual, dear listener, you in the future already probably know more than us. Let's leave the transfer stuff for a minute. What a start, Pun, eh?
00:00:48
Speaker
Who saw this coming? Well, no one did.
Current Football Excitement
00:00:53
Speaker
The thing that really, really excites me is it's not the points tally. It's not the fact that we're second in the league. It's the fact that actually the football appears to be of decent quality. We look like we've got a coherent plan. Well, not just a plan. We've got several coherent plans.
00:01:10
Speaker
We've got people that you know in John Rowe Ashley Barnes was just sergeant, but obviously, you know kind of we're looking at a Long-term injury for him now, but we've got people who are informed that are playing football to that plan and it just Look, let's be frank. We were in a similar position maybe like, you know, you know in September October under Dean Smith in terms of league position and
00:01:37
Speaker
But that felt totally different because performances just didn't merit the points tally that we'd received. This feels like we deserve it. It felt like, look, we could have gone and got three points at Southampton and then been 100% at the moment.
00:01:52
Speaker
that just feels like there's a momentum building. It feels like there's positivity breeding in the fan base, which is infectious. And actually, I think, you know, that translates to the pitch more and more. We've got players we can love again, and that's really important, I think, for fans to get behind.
Unexpected Player Performances
00:02:10
Speaker
You know, the John Rowe song is already an earworm. You know, there's other chants that are emerging. I think that's the thing. I'm not fussed about with Nori Jo and the league right now. I'm fussed about how it feels to be a supporter and it feels pretty good. Yeah, I completely agree with the fact that there's players to love.
00:02:32
Speaker
the underestimated unexpected element of it and you know we were going into the season not sure what we were going to get effectively just saying we were hopeful for you know to really enjoy going to the football however one thing that we did say on the preview pod
00:02:49
Speaker
was if Norwich are going to, in any way, consent, someone like a Johnny Rowe is going to have to make a massive leap up. We basically said either Rowe or Gibbs is effectively going to have a Campwell style or Josh Murphy style season where they massively kick on. Now, we didn't expect five goals in five games, but at the moment, it feels like other than the Sergeant injury, everything has fallen our way.
Transfer Deadline Speculations
00:03:14
Speaker
And whilst I said we'd leave the transfer window stuff till last,
00:03:18
Speaker
it feels like a really important deadline day one of the more important ones in recent times because as i understand it there's two strikers coming in today um and you know this is risky because it's 10 past 1 pm on deadline day so um we're going to try and get this up as quickly as possible and obviously the the preview stuff and the looking back stuff will all still be relevant for those traveling to rotham which is when we know a lot of people listen um but
00:03:46
Speaker
there'll be the young lad coming in to bolster the under 23s and there will be a senior striker. They're going to bring one in and effectively there's two or three names in the frame and it might be very obvious from the signing whether or not it was first, second or third choice that ends up being the one that we're looking at when we're hitting refresh at 10.59pm but they've got to get someone in who can replicate not necessarily the goals of Sargent because I think we are in a fortunate position where there's goals from all around the team at the moment
Wagner's Play Style
00:04:15
Speaker
I think we need the work rate and the physicality and the pressing because that has been for me apart from Southampton the real hallmark of if this is Wagner ball and his early days but if this is what he's always wanted to do it is the relentless pressing and harrying we are such a nightmare to try and have possession of the ball against
00:04:40
Speaker
Southampton are the only team that have dictated tempo for anything more than three or four minutes in a game. And so from my point of view, the names in the frame, you know, your Kiefer Moors, your Lowe's. It's not necessarily about, oh, their goal scoring record doesn't look that good, etc. I hope that it is the person who's going to come in and be the engine that Sargent has been in the early season.
00:05:08
Speaker
Yeah, I'd completely echo that because as soon as we signed Sargent, everyone was up pains to point out that he just worked so hard. And it was a backhanded compliment, wasn't it? Because it kind of meant, well, doesn't score many goals, but he'll work really hard for you. And he's a nice lad, but he's so important to what Norwich are doing at the moment.
Sargent's Injury Concerns
00:05:27
Speaker
And
00:05:28
Speaker
it feels like Wagner's template is still gonna take a little bit of time to reach his optimum. John Rose having to come off for 60, 70 minutes each game, because he hasn't got the legs to do it as yet. It's a good job that we've got quality within the ranks that we can kind of shop and change. It does feel, I know we're not supposed to get us to transfer business, but it does feel like
00:05:54
Speaker
it this really could be make or break because if if sergeant's injury is as suggested as i say several months seems to be you know the time scale i mean he's gonna miss what 1520 games you know he's gonna miss christmas that's it could absolutely kill us um you know if we don't have because i think what we're gonna have to do
00:06:14
Speaker
Nor are you gonna have to change the way in which they press a little bit? They're gonna have to change the dynamic does that mean that Barnes goes into the nine and they maybe look at you know kind of someone in that in a in a more creative role in the ten that Fundamentally changes everything for me because it has felt like a really considered press when we're playing four four two You know kind of with really good trigger points when we do it
00:06:37
Speaker
I genuinely, as a Norwich fan, it's really weird going into transfer deadline day and feeling nervous and feeling like, you know, this is pivotal towards our season.
Striker Options and Risks
00:06:48
Speaker
But I genuinely think it is. I think that Adam Ida's knees have been made of glass for the last couple of years. Ashley Barnes, I don't think he's going to have 46 games in him in a season, although, you know, he's looked brilliant so far.
00:07:04
Speaker
The incoming striker is absolutely huge. It's monumental to what we're going to do over the next couple of months. And I think, ideally, we'd be looking to get someone in who's got the athletic profile and the physicality straight from the off. That's really hard on transfer deadline day. I would not want to be Stuart Webber or David Wagner right now.
00:07:28
Speaker
Well, taking a look at Kiefer Roberto Francisco Moore. Are they genuinely his middle names? That's on Wikipedia, but I mean, I can't guarantee that that isn't nonsense. But I mean, if it is, then fair play. I mean, I don't know how many people born in Torquay have middle names like Roberto and Francisco, or even that he was born in Torquay.
00:07:49
Speaker
But the point has been made that six foot five striker, when you are creating the amount of balls fizzing across the box that we are, potentially he might get a few goals because service has been an issue in the places that he's been prior to going to Bournemouth. Obviously he's down the pecking order there, but the fact that we've got
00:08:16
Speaker
options if we bought in someone with loads of running who is slightly smaller in stature you would be confident that Sara Nunez when he's on pullbacks from the wings like Jack Stacey would create chances for them.
00:08:32
Speaker
And if we go proper old school number nine, so we say, you know, two massive handfuls up front, you know, if we, if we kind of go that, that element of Sargent's character, because I think Sargent offers you both, you know, he offers you that I'm going to give you a really hot, torrid time. Your ribs and toes and elbows are going to be black and blue with the amount of Jocelyn I'm going to give you, and I'm going to run you ragged. Either one of those.
00:08:57
Speaker
if we get that and we feel confident we've got that at the end of this transfer window, I think the rest of the team can rise up around it, because we don't need to be second in, let's say it's first of February that the Sergeant's back. We don't need to be second if we're seventh, but still in touch and distance, we'd have taken that in August. So for such an unbelievable setback to losing him,
00:09:23
Speaker
And we just need someone who's going to do enough to get us to fill that void. So let's look back over the game since we last were on together reviewing games. What a performance at home last time out. Some of the some of the football was just magnificent. And, you know, the three really flattered. I mean, it could have been eight or nine.
Effective Play Patterns
00:09:53
Speaker
the interplay, you talked about patterns of play. One of the things we asked for at the start of the season, we asked for it during the first Farca season and then got it in the second Farca season and whilst the football is different, it's similar this time. We're now seeing the same chances getting created again and again. Jack Stacey, what a signing.
00:10:14
Speaker
You know, he looks, he is constantly a threat, constantly looking to move forward. And the way that he is receiving the ball from Sarah with kind of bending runs around the back of the fullback, and he is constantly pulling balls back so that, you know, we can be confident arriving late. So Johnny Rowe arriving, arriving late at the back post or an extra midfielder arriving late at the penalty spot is constantly going to get balls pulled back from Stacy to hammer, hammer home. And the fact that Barnes is
00:10:43
Speaker
and getting opportunities with his feet you know he's not just a battering ram it's not just like balls into the box for him to kind of knock down to someone but but wasn't it great to see um uh chances like that being created when he came on um
00:11:01
Speaker
In the in in the midweek cup game by knocking the ball down for other put you know for Gibbs to come on to Like an old-fashioned or almost like Holt would knock the ball down for Martin or Holt would knock the ball down foot food and Did it there's an old-fashionedness about it which we haven't had since probably that Triumvirate of
00:11:23
Speaker
Holt, Houlihan and Martin in the League One campaign. That's the last time we had this kind of throwback football. I'd agree with that. I'd also throw into that that I think that he's allied that with what he's got in spades and that's game intelligence. And this is something that I didn't give him credit for and thought he was just all elbows and he'd be a bit of a batter in ram and all of those kind of cliches that people shot out.
00:11:53
Speaker
He's way more than that. You know, he's a really clever player. He knows.
00:11:56
Speaker
when to hold onto the ball. He knows when to bring other people into play. His experience is massively important in that, but not only that, he's got proper technical ability. You know, you just look at the way that he straightened the penalty home, you know, and that's, in microcosm, is proper, you know, kind of side netting territory. The fact that he, as you say, he's played a few of those balls. Some of the balls he receives on his chest, he's got down quickly and then just got out to the right back.
00:12:24
Speaker
In a flash and Stryker's a championship level typically can't do that. You mentioned Jack Stacey. I think, you know, we mentioned him on the last poll as well, but I think Demi Anoulis is having an absolute blinder of a season so far. And it's so nice that we've got two fullbacks who want to get forward, but we've got two fullbacks. Again, we talk about a variety.
00:12:47
Speaker
that want to get forward in a different way. How many times have we seen Dimi step out, not go wide, but actually step out into central areas sometimes and then just play really, after carrying it, maybe 10, 15 yards, playing really cute diagonal balls into strikers. I mean, you know, Fastak's goal against Southampton, I know there's a defensive error prior to it, but you know, that pretty much occurs from him doing this almost like a signature move. It's almost like
00:13:16
Speaker
when Mark Bowen used to maraud forward in the late 80s kind of early
Optimizing Player Roles
00:13:21
Speaker
90s that he just seems to have that nouse about when to step out of defense now. I wonder how much of that is coached and how much of that is him just being given a license and that's the full back that we signed. I think it was Daniel Farker that actually potentially recommended him but it
00:13:40
Speaker
It feels like he's now being harnessed to the best of his abilities. Jack Stacey's definitely being harnessed to the best of his abilities. Gabby Sarr is as well. Kenny McLean, you could argue when he kind of steps in and he's in between the central defenders, that's where he's probably looked best in a Norwich shirt, although he's still got a few mistakes in him. He's looking way better than he has for many seasons for me.
00:14:03
Speaker
It's, it feels like Wagner is getting the, you know, the absolute optimum out of players that actually, you know, some of them, some of them we'd written off, hadn't we? Some of them we just thought, well, they're going to be deemed surplus to requirements and, and we'll have to move on.
00:14:18
Speaker
Well, on that case in point, looking at Tuesday, Poheta, I mean, he's managed to find a player in someone who Stuart Weber referred to as uncoachable, basically. He didn't name him, but he said he didn't have a brain, basically. He said analytics and data says you've got all the physical attributes, but if you can't teach him anything.
Wagner's Coaching Impact
00:14:41
Speaker
But the confidence that has been put into that boy from Wagner
00:14:48
Speaker
the ball that he bent round the corner for Eda's goal. He took a touch, got it out of his feet. Yes, it was counter attack. Yes, there was space because Huddersfield is shit. They were front. They are going down. But even so, it was the way that he got the ball out of his feet and then he could have just run and run and run and run because he had 40 yard space in front of him. And I feel like
00:15:14
Speaker
If we're headed when I've seen him play in an orange shirt, he's just holding onto that ball far too long until enough Huddersfield players are back that he's run out of options and Eda is shouting at him. And instead, he has the confidence, because he has got the ability, he has the confidence to play a beautiful ball directly into the path of Eda so that Eda doesn't have to check his run.
00:15:33
Speaker
which gives Eda the time to then go, right, I've got loads of options here to choose. And again, talk about confidence. And he said in the press recently, this week, I think, Conor maybe had it talking about being a confidence player. I mean, that was such a confident finish. He chose the smaller part of the goal.
00:15:50
Speaker
the near post rather than the far post, which the keeper didn't expect. He hit it with his left foot, a little clip. He didn't whack at it, which he has had a problem with before, knocking ball. How many times we've seen him hit things over the bar because he holds onto the shoot button too long on his controller. But that was a lovely lofted finish, L1 and shoot. That was superb. We know that Wagner's got an arm around the shoulder reputation,
00:16:18
Speaker
maybe he didn't want to put his arm around the shoulder of some of the lads you know last season but again it seems to be a relatively small change in personnel that have all made a massive impact and i now want to round off that point with a shane duffy appreciation moment you know i just think i love him i mean he is what an awful horrible bastard of a footballer to have to deal with he is
00:16:46
Speaker
probably a nightmare of a bastard to play in front of or alongside because he is telling you what to do. He's an absolute man-mountain. I mean seeing him in a fight, I mean he is a big boy and he's really cultured on his feet. He's had a couple of slightly lackadaisical switch-off moments.
00:17:06
Speaker
but nothing to the same level of defensive fuckery that we have had recently and that is one positive. So there has been an absence of that. So what was it like was it last season when at some point like halfway through the season we'd given away the most goals from giveaways in Europe or something?
00:17:27
Speaker
we really think you might be embellishing our point but yeah no no no it was it no there was there was there it was um it was either n cfc numbers or there was in terms of yeah yeah i'm i'm for in the it was on our force errors leading to goals it might have been when we're in the premier league
00:17:43
Speaker
It might have been the Premier League relegation season when basically that was tracked. So yeah, the unforced errors in the top leagues of Europe. 100% there was a statistic around it. But we had it last year as well. Unforced errors, just like total brain fart rolling the ball across the goal or just giving the ball.
00:17:59
Speaker
It's happened once and I think it was actually a bit of bad luck and mainly Gibson's fault for standing in the wrong place. And other than that, we haven't given away chances stupidly. We've been really resolute. There's been a couple of big chances. And again, time for another appreciation announcement. Angus Gun has made two worldies already that have resulted in points this season.
00:18:18
Speaker
Yeah, I'd echo everything you're saying about Duffy and I think the the most credit we can give him is the fact that he's slotted in seamlessly pretty much Actually, you know from straight from preseason He's had to play football without much of you know actual instruction from Wagner and he's looked really decent straight away and he looks like he's taken on everything that's been asked of him and
00:18:43
Speaker
But he's also offered loads loads more. I think like genuinely loads more leadership than Gibson and Hanley combined perhaps in the last
Leadership and New Signings
00:18:53
Speaker
two seasons and that maybe speaks to Where the underlying issues have been and it's really easy like super easy when clubs are playing badly to go Oh, we ain't got no leaders. We need more captains on the team and you know and all that though, but actually It rings true when you see that you we've brought in a Duffy. We've brought in a Barnes
00:19:13
Speaker
who are those. You could give either of those the armband really quickly and it wouldn't be an issue. That's the bits that we are missing and they're the bits where actually then if you've got leaders on the pitch who are demanding accountability out of the people around them
00:19:29
Speaker
Maybe those individual errors don't happen as much because, you know, mine's a sharper, you know, you're focused. It's just, it's way more than, you know, we are producing way more than our collective ability at the minute. And that is credit to Wagner. It's something that we absolutely didn't expect. And look, I know we're going to get onto maybe a review of the transfer window, but it's credit to the transfer window. Like no doubt about that. This is now.
00:19:57
Speaker
probably Stuart Weber's, and let's just not put it on Stuart Weber. I know Stuart Weber is keen to always say, it's not me, we've got a recruitment team. Stuart Weber, David Wagner, probably some of the other coaching staffs, Transfer Window,
Transfer Strategies Shift
00:20:13
Speaker
And it's really interesting to see this departure from what we've been doing over the last three or four seasons where it was considered punts and it was gambles and it was return on investment and all the rest of it. We've completely gone away from that. There is no return on investment on a lot of these players that we've signed, but they are replacing key elements that we just didn't have. But yeah, you've got to credit it.
00:20:37
Speaker
Effectively, they're known entities for whom this may well be their last stop. But the character, the no dickheads element is, or rather the high character elements and what the character brings to the dressing room element, that hasn't changed. That probably seems to be the thing they've got right. Jack Stacey said in his first interview, I love running, looking forward to preseason, I love running.
00:21:03
Speaker
Barnes is unbelievably fit. Duffy's played every minute, I think. You know, he's hardly played last season. Well, for about two or three seasons he's hardly played.
00:21:15
Speaker
And as a leader on a pitch Barnes a leader on the pitch Stacy leads by example because he doesn't stop running You know, I think on that fitness boy you talk about dimmy dimmy looking so good This is the best dimmies though because I think it's also the fittest dimmies been you know, and you know, he has had his injury problems but um, you know on that transfer window thing if
00:21:37
Speaker
that the two names that seem to have the most, and by the way, whilst I have it on relative authority that we're looking for this one young and one old and they're confident it's going to get done, I haven't got names. The two that are in the press, more and low. For me, they very much sit in there. Kyle, try and be positive. Definitely. Yeah, yeah. I can see it with more. I can totally see Kiefer Moore and
00:22:04
Speaker
If you think of it over a different team, if you think that Norwich are going to, for example, Leicester, or we've got Leicester coming to us soon, and you know that you've got Ashley Barnes and Kiefer Moore are going to be the front two.
00:22:21
Speaker
It doesn't exactly strike the fear of God into you. It's not like Erling Harlan's turning up. But at the same time, you just go, oh, they're a pair of double-armed bastards. They're big. They're good in the air. Every set piece, they're going to be a danger. They are wily. They're going to be nicking free kicks. They are seasoned. They've been around the leagues. I mean, more as well from his profile going all the way down, going off and doing a year with Viking or wherever in Denmark, Norway or wherever, coming back.
00:22:48
Speaker
having to go at scum for a bit to try and get a gain. He didn't score for him, so I don't have any... No, he didn't score for him. He's never bought them any joy, so that's fine. I honestly think that I can get more behind him than low. I mean, I'll get behind both of them in an orchard, of course, but in terms of the transfer,
00:23:13
Speaker
I hope, and again, I could look an absolute twat before I've even put this, sorry, as usual, before I even upload this, but I hope it's secret option three that keep in quiet, and there is talk that there is three options they're going with, kind of alluded to that last night, that there might be three in the frame, plus the young lad.
00:23:35
Speaker
I wonder whether Tom Cannon was one of those three, though. And that's now been finalized, hasn't it? I think he's gone to Leicester. He has, but Moore is the only one that I've had that the Archon boys have kind of alluded to being real. Low is paper talk as far as I'm aware. Cannon was real.
00:23:58
Speaker
But again, you think we've probably got a much better chance of getting key for more on loan than we've got of getting a Tom Cannon on loan because it's just the age of the player and where they're at.
00:24:13
Speaker
I hope there is and there's another name in the frame but I can totally talk myself into key for more and can I can see him in a yellow and green shirt with Ashley Barnes causing havoc you know coming on for you know either in barn star and then more comes on and becomes it.
00:24:29
Speaker
someone for us to get the ball up to quickly and play off can totally see that. I think that's the thing for me is we're looking to sign someone to compliment the group not necessarily coming in and go right what you're going to replace Sarge and you need to be you know kind of a template player because I just don't think you get many of those. Certainly not with his work rate, athleticism, all the rest of it.
00:24:54
Speaker
But I would like to see Adam Ida. Look, we've talked about this pod way too much. Adam Ida's development has stagnated. Adam Ida has all of the tools to be a top, top striker. He's just not had the games to go and do it. So my very real hope now
00:25:13
Speaker
is give Iida the chance, let him be your number nine or even in it or let Barnes be the number nine and let him play slightly in behind it because sometimes he'd be better in those pockets of space, but give him the chance to go and score goals. He's already got two under his belt.
00:25:28
Speaker
the assist for John Rowe the other day as well. The way he executed it was absolutely brilliant because it had to be pinpoint. The lads got confidence now. Don't take that away from him by bringing in a player who immediately in a couple of weeks time or post international break
00:25:46
Speaker
is taking his place in the side. That's not what I want to see. I want to see someone compliment the group and then they're rotated properly and we just have goals from everywhere. Because I don't necessarily think it needs to be for Norwich that we've got a 20-25 goal season striker like you said. We've got goals all around the pitch and Gabi Sarra hasn't really chipped in that much.
00:26:07
Speaker
Yet you know you know you will have fast snacks. I think has definitely got goals in him John row We know he's he's gonna get a few this season And we've got boy your sons to come back as well. You know it does feel very positive if we can just get today, right and If there's some money that comes in from about my deli Maybe that we you know that might free up this option number three that you're talking about as well. You know this it is
00:26:33
Speaker
Yeah, I don't think he's going. I can't help but think that with a center back, strikers are far more 11 o'clock than center backs, if you see what I mean, in terms
Transfer Day Nerves
00:26:41
Speaker
of transfer. I think, especially because he'd be a fair bit of cash as well, I can't help but think that the signing of that significance, I feel like he would already be on his way to have a medical and you can't keep that quiet. Yeah, we'd have got wind and then it's, because Norwich have been quite clear that he goes, he gets replaced.
00:27:01
Speaker
So it's then we've got the replacement already winging their way to Colney to do their medical. We can't leave ourselves with two, we can't leave ourselves with two centre backs until what? December or whenever Hanley's ready to play again. I don't think Hanley will ever be the same player because only does rely on that pace. You keep saying that but I believe that Hanley is
00:27:24
Speaker
almost superhuman so i don't think you can i don't think you can yes okay that might be a catastrophic injury to the common man or even the common athlete but he's beyond 30 as well if he was 24 like
00:27:38
Speaker
Yeah, but in Gran Hanley years, it's a bit like Nigerian years. Nigerian footballers are always like 10, you know? Actually 42, yeah. In Gran Hanley years, being over 30, he's like 22. It's like 10 points for him, it's like one shot. That video of him straying around colony was ridiculous. Yeah, he's a man. I love him. And the idea that he could be around the group
00:28:07
Speaker
and play a part, even if he's 80% of the player he was beforehand, the nouse and again the nastiness, you know, when Duffy gets his inevitable suspension, you know, it would be handy if Duffy could just about hold off that inevitable suspension, and it might be too, from talking up the others.
00:28:26
Speaker
It would be handy if we did have Hanley back. You just simply can't rely on Gibson and them to be the only ones. And then, you know, Tompkins is so young. What it seems to be the one, Tompkins was still in a boot a while back. I think he's, you know, he's getting to it. Well, it was on the bench, wasn't it? Yeah. And then the other option is Lungi.
00:28:51
Speaker
But also he wheezes in, but also Fisher seems such a mate. Maybe he can play centre back. He seems to be tiny.
00:29:00
Speaker
Yeah, but he seems to be defying all, he should be nowhere near, he shouldn't even be on the bench yet in terms of his development. That's not what he was bought for and all of a sudden he's, you know, he looked terrific again in mid-week. Yeah, he did. Well, I didn't see the match, so I can't comment on that. I was preparing to come back from Greece, but yeah, he sounds like he's really got a lot about him and the club have been massively, pleasantly surprised with his program.
00:29:28
Speaker
It can really cross, so if Stacey does get an injury or his tank is spent at some point, you've got a lad who can come in who's
00:29:38
Speaker
He almost, he's full of that youthful, you know, kind of fearlessness that Max Ehrens was when he came in 1819 and just ripped it up. And I'm not making those direct comparisons around Kellan Fisher, but what I am saying is that I see that same, you know, just kind of, right, well, let's just go and do it. Let's just go and have a go. Let's get down the wing. Let's see what happens. And yeah, technically, he looks like he's got loads about him as well.
00:30:04
Speaker
I think that's the one thing that's shifted in this recruitment strategy actually is that we're signing a lot of, we're really bolstering the youth ranks and I think there's the lab that's coming from Ireland, there's a couple of others that seem to be muted that we're going to sign in forward areas. Feels like we're looking after maybe the next three or four years in terms of kind of next cabs off the rank.
00:30:33
Speaker
which I didn't necessarily expect. It feels like Mariela and Nisataki in terms of the head of emerging talent, or whatever her job role is now, or her job title is now, she's really honing in on those top, top prospects. And I think that might be a more effective route at championship level, and then picking up these frees who've got the nous, and as you say, the character.
00:30:59
Speaker
It might just be a slightly different melting pot that we're working with now.
00:31:03
Speaker
Well, James Macatee, who was linked with us, the young Man City guys, just signed for Sheffield United, where I think he went previously. So that's one that's come off the board. But also, Sheffield United were in for Kiefer Moore as a kind of, I think Kiefer Moore was mooted as one of their backup players. That's what I saw on the Twitters this morning. But I mean, it'll all shake out in the next few hours.
00:31:32
Speaker
My confidence level is high If we can get someone who's gonna run around a bit because I like to say I think that's the bit of sergeants game that I'm most concerned about not having I mean looking ahead to Rotherham who obviously got I Mean what's the best way of putting this? Annihilated in the week. I mean, I mean that that's not that's not a great great performance is it they are low on confidence in the league and
00:32:01
Speaker
the cup game wasn't was an opportunity to build some momentum obviously they didn't didn't take that and in theory we should be strolling there and we should you know we've sold out our allocation and and it should be it's going to be noisy you know our tails are going to be up can you see anything other than three points for Norwich up there
00:32:21
Speaker
Yeah, and the reason I say that is that I always feel like there's an element of when teams have received a bit of a dick in, there's that wounded animal element, and you often see that if Norwich would get done five or six that they'd come back with a performance and want to prove themselves.
00:32:40
Speaker
It wouldn't surprise me if we went there and we only came away with a point and that isn't a disaster. If you'd given us 11 points from the first five games, I think everyone would have been more than satisfied with that, no matter how you got those.
Match Predictions vs. Rotherham
00:32:57
Speaker
But we should go there with loads of confidence. We should go there firing on all cylinders. And I think they're probably going to have a game plan like Warnock did for John Rowe. But that's fine. If they're going to double up on John Rowe, just give space for other players. And there's loads of technical quality in this squad. And I think that the likes of Fassneck and Barnes and Sarah and hopefully Rowe, if he's not Man Martz,
00:33:25
Speaker
It should be enough. It just feels like every time we strut onto the pitch now, we've at least got two goals in this. And at championship level, you score two or three goals every game. Well, you're going to be absolutely fine, no problem at all.
00:33:39
Speaker
Yeah, I think we will get three points. I think I'd like to hope that if we went ahead early, that it could be an absolute route. I don't think it will be. I think it will be a fairly. Nervier fair and we might win by, by the odd goal. The odd Adam Eda goal we're setting up. So that's your guarantee is it for this week? Your guarantee is a what? 2-1 win? 1-0 win? Let's go, let's go 2-1 with an Adam Eda looping header.
00:34:09
Speaker
I think we are, I think we're due a Barnes hat trick. So I'm guaranteeing a Barnes hat trick and a 4-1 win. I think that I don't, I get the wounded animal logic.
00:34:24
Speaker
But I think Norwich are too strong in confidence, fitness and momentum. And I think that our particular brand of football is set up to hurt anyone who decides that they're a wounded animal and they need to go out and give a performance. Because I think we've got the pace to hurt you in behind if you want to try and come at us. Good luck.
00:34:49
Speaker
I don't think Rotherham can risk anything other than trying to block us and sit in. And if they try and come out and play, good luck. And I think if they do try and just sit in, we've got the physicality that we haven't had in past championship squads to just bang the door down, huff and puff and blow your door down. So I think whilst it's not Sargi-Bargi anymore, we've just got the Bargi, I think him and Eda will be enough. So yeah, I'm going 4-1 Norwich.
00:35:19
Speaker
That's nice. I mean, Lester went there and only shaded it. I think we should make that point as well, that rather a master, dogged and obdurate and will make life difficult for us. But I think if we go out early on, then your prediction could be could be infinitely possible. Yeah. And Islam prediction security. Right. Let's do some questions before we wrap up and try and get this uploaded before we sign someone and this will be out of date.
00:35:48
Speaker
Matthew McGregor on Twitter, he asked three questions. I will ask two of them. Well, so first of all, is Rob Newman's head too large for him to be our sporting director? And he says literally, not metaphorically. A lot of the Buzz Lightyear is about Mr. Newman, isn't it?
00:36:08
Speaker
No, it isn't. There you go. What do you think of Rob Newton as Newton? I know we've talked about it a little bit, but actually... I don't know enough. I mean, that could be...
00:36:23
Speaker
Now, I don't know enough about what I think is tricky with these types of appointments and weighing up these different things is it's very, very difficult. And we've had this conversation about kind of Weber and Farker and just now Weber, Mariela, Zoe, it's very tricky to genuinely judge people on the off the pitch recruitment side of things for
00:36:51
Speaker
yeah but was emmy bwendy at you like did you personally go out there and and so i was at you that studied the data and did that or actually the fact that newman's been as part of some large recruitment teams and how much is that really well-dueled team with some of the best data people in football and some of the best technology available and etc etc etc plus side of that is
00:37:12
Speaker
That means he can come here and say, oh, by the way, when I was at so-and-so, we had this than the other. When I was somewhere else, they did this technique. So that could further our development. What I would say is I would like someone that has worked at a much bigger club than Norwich, which Rob Newman has.
00:37:29
Speaker
So I would like two clubs that are way bigger than Ored. Well quite, but my point is at least one for more than five minutes and relatively recently. It would be good that we are getting someone in who is, we know there's been loads of investment in data and analytics and Webber to his credit says he doesn't understand it, but he understands the output.
Recruitment Strategy Impact
00:37:47
Speaker
We need someone else who can come in who either can say straight away, maybe they nick a couple of the data geeks that come with them, or maybe they're able to bring someone else with them underneath them. But importantly, they've had their eyes open to that future. I think the Brewers guys will be really keen on that as well. Atelassie is really into his analytics and his money bought. So they will also probably be pushing for a persona who is really keen to look for progressive data-led ways of making decisions.
00:38:16
Speaker
And that's how I'd like to see the club develop because that's that's really our only chance of competing Until the until we sports wash and get bought by some awful state We need to basically be smarter in the decisions we make and at the moment
00:38:35
Speaker
Fingers crossed we're celebrating at 11 o'clock tonight. Although we'll only really know when, however it is we buy, it's scored the fifth hat trick. But hopefully we're celebrating an almost flawless window. Because at the moment, fingers crossed Touchwood, it's been flawless. We haven't lost anyone that's weakened us. Because what we've done really is lost a fantastic servant to the club. But we've got a player who looks really good in the championship and seven million quid.
00:39:01
Speaker
And other than that, everyone else who's come in has played a part in an unbeaten start to the season.
00:39:09
Speaker
Yeah, and I think going back to Rob Newman, what he is, we've said this before, he's a recruitment specialist and that's what the football club needs right now more than anything else. I think it's to build and expand and complement what we've got in place already because it is clear, we've spoken to some of them on pods and outside of
00:39:32
Speaker
that arena as well, that we've got some really clever, insightful people in those positions that could really push us on. We have also maybe struggled in terms of our overall strategy. I think that's the bit that's really interesting for me is how we have, I've said it before on this pod, but we've just moved away from our transfer strategy significantly this season. And it dispels the notion
00:40:02
Speaker
that, all right, well, head coaches are interchangeable and actually we're signing players for a certain style of play. No, we're not. No, we're not. You know, Christina Fastenak was David Wagner's man. You know, Long, the goalkeeper, was Paul Clement's man. You're not telling me that Barnes and Shane Duffy weren't on the radar of absolutely everyone and we've signed them because they're good lads rather than, you know, anything else.
00:40:23
Speaker
We've completely ripped it up, not saying that's wrong. It's just a different way of doing things. So I think it would be good for someone now to come in and just have some different ideas and hopefully shape it and take it in a direction that develops us again. Because as you say, that's what we need to be sustainable. We've got to make really good decisions nearly all of the time, almost like a Brentford can and do. And they continue to deliver on that as well.
00:40:53
Speaker
Let's have one more from Mcgee. He asks, which is the bigger priority, a new city stand or safe standing in the Berkeley? A new city stand. Why? Because I think that that is a far bigger thing to resolve. Safe standing can be kind of flicked almost on and off in a switch relatively easily over a weekend.
00:41:21
Speaker
I disagree with that. I think that there is something that's being built at the club at the moment. Well, not at the club at the moment, it's being built outside of the football club doing it. But City Elite have started something with the drum. They've started a culture on the terraces, which I think has enthused a different demographic of supporter. There are young lads now turning up to Carrow Road.
00:41:49
Speaker
who just wanna come along to make a load of noise. And that's the thing for me that I think if we're gonna be successful as a football club, everyone needs to be together. And I'm not sure 5,000 extra seats on the city stand achieves that. And I'm not even sure that we'd sell them actually, unless we're being hyper successful, then maybe we will. But I think there was games in the Premier League,
00:42:14
Speaker
There was games certainly last season in the championship where, let's be honest, there were 21,000, 22,000 people at Cara Road. The actual official attendance figures might have said completely different because of the way in which these tickets are counted and all the rest of it. But if you wanted to get a casual ticket at Cara Road for most games last season, that was not an issue for you. You could do it, you could achieve it quite easily.
00:42:39
Speaker
Why is that different with rail seating? No, but in terms of what's a bigger priority, I think if you bring in rail seating, we're not talking about expanding attendance. What we're talking about is building something different, a bit like, you know, kind of Dortmund's yellow wall or, you know, however you want to look at it. But it's about building a culture where you can have rail seating, you can have a specific area for a drum, or you can be slightly... We've got that now. The drum is in the same place every week.
00:43:08
Speaker
It is. The atmosphere isn't brilliant because of rail seating or not rail seating. The atmosphere is brilliant because we love the football club currently because they're playing a brand of football we can get on board with and there's personalities overachieving. That's why the atmosphere is brilliant. And there's people.
00:43:23
Speaker
but there is people on the terraces that are complementing that and rail scene will complement that and i think that's the thing is that if you talk about terrace culture and supporters like that the whole standing element the whole being slightly more flexible about where people can congregate the whole you know having a specific area for the drum the drum has got a position right now it's not very safe and it doesn't give a lot of flexibility for the people using the drum to perhaps be a bit more creative around how they are
00:43:51
Speaker
um looking to generate atmosphere i think as a club we need to buy into a bit more into the you know the whole drum displays you know whatever that might be and i think you can be more flexible with rail seating so i think you build something that's different for a different generation of supporters and you probably encourage a few of the older heads in the barkley who have been there for
00:44:12
Speaker
25 30 years a season ticket holders to go. Yeah, you know what? Actually now my time might be up and I'm gonna gravitate towards the city stand or a new large city stand New 5,000 Caesar, so I get I get I mean I'll be happy with either right. It's fantastic what's happening my my my concern is that the club have lost a lot of appetite for atmosphere generation they've lost a lot of appetite for
00:44:40
Speaker
working collaboratively with support groups. They've lost a lot of appetite for saying yes to 0.001% risky ideas. You know, there's a reason that you've not seen a great deal of flags and banners and displays at Carrow Road this year and you can be guaranteed it's not. I mean, not this season. This season has only been two home games and there's been good reasons why we haven't done displays.
00:45:07
Speaker
But back in the last season you're right. Yeah, but also there have been times previously where there's been a real appetite from the club and it's been a case of even if there were certain people on holiday or away or practical issues.
00:45:22
Speaker
we would come over, we would be able to kick out over them because the club were basically meeting this halfway and effort on that side of things. It doesn't really necessarily feel like the situation at the moment. No, but I think that that gets easier as success on the pitch breeds positivity everywhere. That's not how it could be. I'm just saying that you've got a slightly more open door if there is success happening because we experienced that in 18, 19 and all right, we had to force that door ajar, but once we did,
00:45:52
Speaker
actually when everything was going well and we executed everything in terms of displays in a way that couldn't be criticized or didn't really have any flaws and just added benefit, full stop, then we pretty much were just allowed to get on with it and to build a culture that season and probably leading into the next as well for the first three or four months of the Premier League.
Stadium vs. Fan Culture
00:46:14
Speaker
Where it's still for really good and everything felt really positive and I that's where I mean around the immediate priority for me would be well seeing because I just think it taps into that and it gets a different kind of support on board and it creates experience at at camera road that is not just this kind of.
00:46:34
Speaker
transactional, customer-led thing. It is proper supporter culture. I think that you can build off the back of that. And that's why it would be super important for me, because I just don't think we will fill that city stand like everyone thinks we will. But happy to be proven wrong if we want to spunk 78 million quid on it. Yeah, that's 78 million quid. Genuinely, there's been a quote. From what I understand, there's been a quote. It's going to cost 100 million to do the regenerative work. Well, I'll do it for half that.
00:47:05
Speaker
on your own. No, me and a couple of lads, a couple of pails, a couple of shovels. I'll do it over one in July. Right, we have to finish on this question because it's a quarter. Matthew Craven asks on male Twitters, as it's September, which member of the squad do you think would be best at Conquers?
Team Member Fun Debate
00:47:30
Speaker
Duffy would put the Conquering in his fist and
00:47:34
Speaker
Yeah, just punch the other lad's conker. So who's the most old school? I reckon Kenny might have some proper old school hand-me-down advice in terms of like soaking in vinegar or soaking in mad dog. Yeah, I'd agree with that.
00:47:52
Speaker
I reckon he'll have some sort of chemical, chemistry set style. I wonder where you go with the chemical Kenny. Yeah, wow. I don't think that'll catch on. Yeah, chemical Kenny and then maybe, yeah, Duffy's old school. There is a real throwback old school style kind of feel to some of these new lads.
00:48:21
Speaker
Yeah, that would be my answer. Kenny would be tricksy about it. And Duffy, maybe because he can just swing his harder than anyone else.
00:48:31
Speaker
I'm going to go purely on. I think the game of Conquers is a game of accuracy. So I think if we looked at that, I think one of the most accurate passes on his day is Marcelino Nunez and I think he could proper. Just make sure that he's hitting the right spot at the right time, all the time and he'd chip away at you. If you miss the Conquers, you're screwed anyway.
00:48:55
Speaker
I think you're onto something there. I also think he would have one of the most elaborate knots on the bottom of his string as well. And also his string would probably be like Chilean colours as well. Like he'd have some sort of multi-coloured string. Yeah, he'd probably have it like custom made by some... Have you seen that? Like he gets his boots like custom made now, like modded and all that. He's one of those boys. Flash.
00:49:21
Speaker
Ah, cool. Well, thank you very much for discussing stuff that we hope isn't our date. We will upload this. Guarantees were a 2-1 win with a needed score and a 4-1 win with a Barnes hat trick. So neither of those two are happening. We've been even closer. I've said this every time, so I haven't been the one. I've got a scoreline right once. I think that was about it. I'm proud of you. Cheers. Thanks for listening, old partner. We'll see you next time we see you mind a game.