Match Day Thread Norwich vs Barnsley - Sat. Jan 2nd, 15.00 hrs.

So this Saturday it's top of the league table vs top of the form table.
Barnsley have won four of their last five ......and that's before Carlton Morris joins them from M K Dons!
In previous meetings, Norwich have won 18, lost 10 and drawn 14.
Team news will follow, but who will be in goal for City?
Will Buendia play or be "rested"?
Watch this space....

 

Still undefeated Cromer.
From acorns etc etc

 

Not too sure about acorns - but this goal sure was a peach.

 

Looking back at the last game and the open goal that guy managed to spoon over from 2 feet in 85 mins, on reflection it was a good point on the board.

I would be tempted to start Hugill and give Pukki a rest .

Maybe get Max to put first time crosses in and pick out the big guy.

Opposition teams seem to have sussed us out and we are struggling to unpick defences with our skillful players .

Sorensen also gets into great crossing positions but chooses to pass backwards losing the momentum and giving the opposition time to crowd the box as we ping the ball sideways and backwards looking for that killer pass and space.

Maybe even put 2 strikers on and go for it ?

 

Any news on the goalkeeper situation?

 

John Mcracken will probably be back up to Biden

 

Biden??
He's a bit old even for us

 

Hahaha bloody autocorrect

 

Now Quintilla is fit again I’d suggest putting him in if Hugill is going to play up front. His crossing ability would suit someone like Hugill far better than it would Pukki. It would be harsh on Sorensen but he has played a lot of games recently.

 

Yes, though It might be good for a change up to freshen the team, so we stop trying to walk the ball into the net and overcomplicating things.

On another note I should be available to do the match day threads when we next need someone to do them...I hope that Cromercanary will be busy with them until mid-May

 

Question: What have the current two form teams in the Championship, Brentford and Barnsley, got in common?
Answer: They are both examples of clubs whose owners ground their operational strategies in data analysis. Barnsley are even part-owned by Billy Beane, of Oakland Athletics and Moneyball fame, who has a 10% share holding in the club. To quote a press article introducing Barnsley's new owners to local fans: "As General Manager of the Oakland Athletics, he [Beane] pioneered the use of statistics to find undervalued players and turned the side into one of the most competitive and cost-effective in the league." Sounds familiar?

 

Good news - you'll be on well before January is out knowing my form guide!

 

Nice try, Robbie, but that said Brentford are still 3 points behind us and Barnsley are 10 points behind us. I'll keep my money on us.

 

Isn’t Robbie just saying success is tied to data analysis rather than criticising us? It would be odd to criticise us there as we know our recruitment team has been heavily data analytical for a few years now, both Buendia and Pukki were identified for their statistical successes in specific situations, with Buendia in particular having stats which suggested he was underrated. I think data analytics is a big part of our success.

 

please log in to view this image

 

You may be right, Rob, but this is what I was responding to:

"Answer: They are both examples of clubs whose owners ground their operational strategies in data analysis."

If that means recruitment strategies then I apologise. I took it to mean on-field tactics. I don't see their difference from us in recruitment and Robbie seems to be implying that we should be doing what they do, having now lost our 15 game unbeaten streak.

 

Exactly so Rob. I wasn't "trying" anything. Just thought people might be interested, given Barnsley's unnoticed rise up the table and their being our next opponents.

 

No apology needed Rick. But what you responded to does specifically say "owners", not managers or head coaches! That said, in common with virtually every league club nowadays, I'm sure data analysis is an absolutely crucial part of their football decision-making, just as it is of ours.

 

Yes, I missed the "owners" in that, but if they are doing what we do, what is your distinction, given that we just completed a 15 match unbeaten run? My recollection is that Brentford were one of the first to go that way, sacking Mark Warburton because he didn't want to recruit based on statistical analysis.

 

Good shout , if we mix it up and start pinging crosses in then we will be less predictable and hopefully our midfielders can pick up loose clearances and profit from mistakes.

We have become too reliant on

I was scheduled to do the next one but be my guest mate the more the merrier