Match Day Thread AFC Bournemouth - 15:00 - Norwich City

He has just had a hernia opp. He passed a ball or stretched for something I think. So he might have felt a little something, and wanted to play it safe. Hopefully he’ll be ok.

 

With Bournemouth’s attackers and strike power, and the injuries, and playing 2 CDM’s at CB. Pretty magic not to lose.

 

Yes, seemed to be precaution but didn't Tettey do well at CB!. Trybull also looked good after coming on.

 

couldn’t agree more, a great point won and a clean sheet to boost confidence

 

A very useful away point. Not the greatest game by all accounts, but the rot most definitely stopped. Take that all day long

 

It was impressive the way we passed the ball once we'd absorbed Bournemouth's early pressure. Tettey was immense at both DM and CB, with Amadou keeping Wilson in his pocket.

 

WhoScored had Amadou as the MotM with a 7.9 rating. He was a huge part of limiting Wilson to 2 shots, both off target. The return of Tettey was also a key and he showed that he can also be effective at CB. The other key was the three man midfield with McLean and Leitner either side of Tettey (Trybull after Godfrey left). Surprisingly, that didn't weaken the attack, which improved further when Hernandez came on.

 

Lovely little shot from Pukki. He was unlucky the Keeper pulled off a good save.

 

Sorry Rick but I have to disagree with that; it did weaken our attack. We were not able to penetrate the opposition penalty area to anything like the extent we normally do. Only three (30%) of our shots were from inside the area. Compare that with the Villa game when over 60% were within the area. Fact is, until Hernandez came on, we were largely reduced to easily cut out crosses from wide and pot shots from outside the box. I'm not looking far for the explanation -- no Stiepermann!

I'm not questioning the success of the changes in terms of a valuable point gained, and the clean sheet. But it did have a detrimental effect on our offensive play (and IMO both Cantwell and Buendia suffered from Marco's absence).

 

Fair point, Robbie, but you're comparing an away game to a home game. Did we generate 60% of our shots from within the area in our other four away games? I doubt it. Cantwell did not look himself yesterday and I don't think that was because Marco was missing. I'd have liked to have seen Hernandez on earlier, as by that time Bournemouth were defending in depth as we pinned them back. If we had had him earlier his pace on the counter could have created real problems for Bournemouth.

There's no doubt though that we were better defensively yesterday and the reason for that was the extra man (a DM!) in midfield. That changed the balance to central strength which provided better cover for the defence while allowing Leitner more freedom as playmaker. IMO, he is more effective when he doesn't have an AM in front of him. This showed in his first season when Maddison restricted his game. Stiepermann does move about more, but his presence does limit Leitner's options. Those also improve when he has a DM and CM behind him when he goes forward, with less pressure on him defensively. DF may bring back Stiepermann, but I hope he doesn't, as ManUtd will exploit the gaps of a weaker midfield.

 

Actually Rick, against Liverpool 54% inside the area, against West Ham, 60% inside the area, against Palace, 70% inside the area, against Burnley only 45%. Those figures come from WhoScored by the way. Can I rest my case?
Again, I've no quarrel with what you say on the defensive front, it was just your saying that the changes against Bournemouth didn't have a detrimental effect further forward. Of course, if we continue with this slightly more defensive approach, the impact of Marco's absence may lessen over time.

 

The statistics back you up Robbie, but there's still the fact that only one goal was scored in those 4 games.

 

Positive spin #237
Now we have two ball-playing midfielders at CB perhaps we can nullify that high press and continue to play out from the back.

 

Some wise words from DDF - https://www.edp24.co.uk/sport/norwich-city/bournemouth-0-norwich-0-six-things-1-6332519
Edit - Amadou did well as a CB. Am I right in thinking that Saturday's game was the first time that a fully fit TK has been in goal behind him since the Citeh game??

 

Yes he identified many of the key points in a good performance.

"A sole statistic cannot tell the whole story of the game but that improvement does reflect an acknowledgment from Daniel Farke that his team had to improve defensively, earning the most welcome of clean sheets. And this was not a case of 'parking the bus', it probably never will be under Farke - City still had 53pc of possession and few Cherries fans could have complained if the visitors had won. Premier League shut-outs are not easy to come by though, it was just a third in 27 top-flight Canaries games, and when almost half of the game is played with two emergency centre-backs, it should be fully savoured."

He's also right to praise Tettey, Lewis and Amadou for the clean sheet, but Krul's return was also a big factor in that. Some wondered why Tettey was given a new contract, but that has been well and truly answered. For me, the return of Hernandez was also a huge thing, as his pace and ability to beat players brings a different dimension as the article points out:

"The winger's urgency took him down the wing - in front of those away fans - within three minutes, cutting back to Buendia, who teed up Tom Trybull for a 20-yard shot which flew just wide. Then deep into injury-time Hernandez skipped past Adam Smith, only for the ball to be poked behind as Teemu Pukki shaped to shoot. It was only the start of the comeback and that 15-minute burst left him looking tired, yet it should not be forgotten just how big a role he played in last season's title success. Eight goals and 11 assists from 42 Championship games is why those travelling fans were so excited to see Hernandez back in action."

IMO, had Onel played the whole game we might have won. Cantwell has been a much improved player this season, but he wasn't at his best yesterday.

 

What is the latest update with regard to injuries to Klose, Zimmermann, Hanley and Godfrey? Who else, in the main squad, is also injured?

 

Godfrey was taken off as a precaution and could well be back on Sunday. Hanley and Zimmerman will be about two months with a possibility of returning before the festive matches at the end of December.

 

How long is Klose likely to be out of action?