It’s been an action-packed start to the Championship for Norwich, belying a summer of malaise and low expectations around Carrow Road. Jon Punt from Along Came Nodge is cautiously revising his summer predictions upwards.

Last season looked turgid, how was it to live through?

Turgid is a fairly accurate description. The club were at pains to point out that promotion, ideally automatically, was the stated ambition. Points wise it was a promising start but the football never really felt fit for purpose under Smith and sadly results and performances regressed to a point where his position was completely untenable and insults from the stands had become as personal towards a manager as I’ve ever heard at Carrow Road.

Daniel Farke is still loved around these parts and there may well have been a case of the David Moyes Syndrome about it all. However, Smith made very little attempt to engage with supporters, beyond an early season fans forum where it looked like he was dreaming of being anywhere else, and probably on the 1st tee of a local golf club.

Wagner shifted the mood temporarily and there were signs it could change, then half the squad got injured and the rest of the division seemed to work us out tactically, culminating in one win in the last eleven. Grim.

Norwich so far this season
Norwich 2-1 Hull Rowe 45, Idah 90 – Delap 17
Southampton 4-4 Norwich Bednarek 17, Armstrong pen 21, pen 90, Adams 57 – Sargent 7, Sara 23, Rowe 45, Fassnacht 84

What's changed over the summer, how's the mood?

Expectation is probably as low as it’s been since the start of 2018-19, when we actually ended up romping to the title. Yet this time, it feels like the overhaul is incomplete and most would settle for a top 10 finish.

Norwich are stuck in a post promotion/yo-yo purgatory which will either see us kick into life once more or settle into season after season of Championship mediocrity and I’m not actually sure what most would prefer right now.

Ins >>> Christian Fassnacht, 29, RM, Young Boys, £2.5m >>> Kellen Fisher, 19, RVB, Bromley, £100k >>> Borja Sainz, 22, LW, Giresunspor, Free >>> Shane Duffy, 31, CB, Brighton, Free >>> Jack Stacey, 27, RB, Bournemouth, Free >>> Ashley Barnes, 33, CF, Burnley, Free

Outs >>> Max Aarons, 23, RB, Bournemouth, £8m >>> Bali Mumba, 21, RB, Plymouth, £1m >>> Kieran Dowell, 25, AM, Rangers, Free >>> Teemu Pukki, 33, CF, Minnesota, Free >>> Daniel Sinani, 26, RW, St Pauli, Free >>> Michael McGovern, 39, GK, Hearts, Free >>> Abu Kamara, 19, CF, Portsmouth, Loan >>> Sam Byram, 29, RB, Released >>> Josh Martin, 21, LW, Released

Signings look fairly stodgy to me, what do you make of the activity done?

It could be argued that Norwich didn’t have enough, big, hard bastards last season. In Barnes and Duffy we’ve definitely got a couple of those. Stacey seems a solid addition and has impressed in pre-season, but the issues look like they’ll be around creating chances.

Christian Fassnacht has just signed from Young Boys in an effort to help with that, while Borja Sainz, who is apparently a bit of an assist machine is crocked until October.

The business so far could be described as solid rather than spectacular, but in honesty it’s completely dependant on outgoings. The club have sold Max Aarons for a big fee which should get things moving a little bit.

How do you see this season going?

I originally saw the season going very badly. A sporting director that has already announced he’ll leave the club imminently and a head coach that has been appointed by the same guy. I’m not sure we’ve ever seen that kind of equation end well. Let’s say we’ll finish 14th and we’ll have had three different head coaches. Kind of like Watford, but shitter.

But we’ve actually started incredibly well. My concerns about our attacking play seem to be ill-founded and there is a plenty of variety around how we’ll go about it, whether than be direct or more considered short sharp passing. That said, are the first couple of games any kind of barometer as to how things will go? Almost always not, and QPR fans know that better than anyone.

We’ve been playing 4-4-2 but often quite flexibly, as McLean will drop in between the centre backs and the full-backs will bomb on, leaving our wide players to exploit the half spaces. Out of possession is perhaps the biggest change from last term, we seem way better and considered in our pressing from the front, the leadership of Barnes and energy of Sargent has seen to that. Jack Stacey looks accomplished already, it’s strange to say we haven’t missed the quality of Max Aarons. Duffy looks like the strong dogged centre back we need and will fit in well at Norwich given it looks like he might have the odd clanger in him. Ashley Barnes is, well, shithousery personified and in the best possible way. Whisper it quietly, but this might be up there with Stuart Webber’s best ever transfer windows.

Early days, but carry on as we are and we’ll be play-off contenders. I did not expect to be saying that a few weeks ago.

Links >>> Norwich Official Website >>> The Pink ‘Un — Local Press and Forum >>> Eastern Daily Press — Local Press >>> My Football Writer - Norwich City >>> Along Come Norwich - Blog

The Twitter @puntino, @AlongCameNodge, @loftforwords

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TacticalR added 11:55 - Aug 19 Thanks to Jon. Although the regular get promotion/get relegated cycle has been interrupted, it sounds like there isn't too much wrong at Norwich.
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