Norwich

There was something about yesterday’s FA Cup final that irked me.

At full-time, minutes after bagging one of potentially four trophies, Liverpool’s players started bouncing up and down to the sound of Dua Lipa.

Now, I’ve got nothing against Dua. She’s released some pretty catchy tunes.

But is this what football has become? Just another vapid pop culture experience for us to post on our Instagram or TikTok feeds?

It used to mean so much more. The working man’s game. A form of escapism after a long and dreary week at work. An opportunity to have a laugh with people that you otherwise wouldn’t see.

I suppose it still is all of those things, but something is definitely missing.

When we were all confined to our homes at the height of the pandemic, we were desperate to have the match day experience back.

But cast your eyes to today’s game and you wonder if it was ever worth missing.

Yet again, Wolves went through the motions.

All of the pre-match talk was of this being a chance to right the wrongs of recent weeks and end the season on a high. 

Spare me. We never got going and managed to make one of the most ordinary sides to ever grace the league look half decent.

It was another sorry performance from a group of players that are dining out on the goodwill of a loyal support base.

If some of this lot played in front of more fickle fans, they’d be hounded out. 

I’ve seen some bad tribute acts in my time but this Willy Boly one tops the pile. What on Earth has happened to him? Cart horse doesn’t cut it. 

Coady wasn’t much better and his hooking at half-time suggests that he may not be as bulletproof as he previously has been. 

I’d like to see Moutinho get a new deal but one cannot argue that a more ambitious club would have upgraded some time ago. 

Up top, it was another anonymous showing from Hwang (who is well and truly pulling an O’Hara on us) and Raul, who continues to look a shadow of the majestic player he once was. 

If I was going to find a positive, it’d be in the performances of Toti, Ait Nouri and Chiquinho. You’d only expect them to improve with further exposure to first-team football.

But there can be no doubt that the time has come for this team to have a serious face-lift. The question is – will Fosun sanction it? 

It’s hard to imagine them doing so without cashing in on our crown jewel, whose face was adorned with tears at full-time as the adoring Molineux crowd serenaded him. 

The thought of this current team without Neves is enough to make you shudder, but that may be the future we’ve all got to prepare ourselves for. 

But, with the beautiful game increasingly dominated by a handful of super-rich clubs, maybe we just have to accept that it is after all just a game. 

We can dissect the season next week. Now we just need to take care of business.

Eighth place won’t get us into Europe but I still want to lock it down and finish our home campaign on a high note.

We currently sit 14th based exclusively on results at Molineux. 7 wins isn’t atrocious but the 9 defeats have made for a lot of unpleasant viewing.

It’s time to come together, put everything else aside for 90 minutes and force the team over the line.

Norwich

There was probably one small moment when it looked like Norwich might have a chance of staying up not long after Dean Smith took over, but it soon came and went.

Now the only objective is to avoid finishing bottom of the table, but even that is fanciful on current form. The Canaries have lost their last 5 games, conceding 15 and scoring just 2 (with no goals in their last 4 matches).

Teemu Pukki has got to double figures, which is an admirable achievement in a relegation season for a side that has only managed 22 in total – the lowest in the league. Even Wolves have mustered 36.

The 78 they’ve now conceded after the 3-0 whipping by Leicester means they have the worst defensive record too. That’s a good achievement considering what Leeds have been up to this season.

Still, one victory might be enough to get them 19th and with a trip to Spurs for their final game, they’ll probably see this as the last opportunity to do something. They have already won at Molineux this season.

Wolves

The more attack-minded approach we incorrectly deployed in midweek should be the formula to get after Norwich on Sunday.

Chiquinho did a lot of good things against City but I felt for him slogging it out at wingback. I’d enjoy seeing him further forward and that front three would give me hope of scoring some goals.

Jonny didn’t look like he enjoyed being part of the back three against City, but then again, who would in that situation? The attacking positions he takes up from wingback give us a much needed added dimension so I hope he’s back where he belongs on Sunday.

I’d bring Toti in at the back because, why not? None of our defenders have showered themselves in glory of late and he barely put a foot wrong when he came into the team earlier in the season.

Last time out

Norwich put us out of the FA Cup in February in a game that really exposed our shortcomings as an attacking force. We wanted a cup run so it was doubly disappointing to see us blank again.

They also had the better of things at Carrow Road back in November, with only wasteful finishing and Jose Sa denying them the three points.

Predictions

MILDENHALL WOLF thought we’d lose 5-0 against Man City so he was about the closest to getting it right.

Brompton Wolf is now well clear at the top of the overall table at the end of Gameweek 36.

As always, if you’d like to join in, it’s simple – just leave your prediction in the comment section below using the boxes provided. Then repeat for every preview article throughout the season, making sure you always use the same email address to make your prediction. Your email is what ties you to your overall score.

You can read my prediction for the game in the comment section below.

Up The Wolves!

I had a feeling that this wouldn’t be quite as straightforward as others seemed to think.

Norwich might be entrenched in the bottom three, but they’d won two on the spin heading into this and are full of the new manager bounce.

They certainly edged this contest, with Jose Sa making a couple of key saves to keep the Canaries at bay.

Our number one is growing in stature with every passing game and was a clear man of the match on a day when his teammates underwhelmed.

Wolves were tidy enough in possession, but failed to create clear-cut chances.

That may be due in part to another anonymous showing from Trincao, who failed to justify his selection.

The Portuguese is undoubtedly talented but appears far too lightweight to cope with the rigours of English football.

Traore would surely have been a better choice from the off, especially given the Norwich defence’s propensity for playing themselves into trouble.

Whatever you may think of the Spaniard, he can’t be expected to turn a game when he’s played out of position. Seeing him shifted out to right wing-back was probably the most frustrating thing about this game.

Alas, Bruno has more than earned our trust at this stage and can count himself unlucky to be deprived of the services of Podence after his standout showing last weekend.

And there’s something to be said for a team that can grind out results when under par. We might not always be pretty, but we’re proving a tough nut for teams to crack.

Still, with some really tough games on the horizon, it’s hard to shake the feeling that this was an opportunity missed.

19 points from 12 games represents the best start we’ve ever made to a Premier League season.

When you consider we lost the first three matches without scoring a goal, that’s some turnaround.

We now go back-to-back against two of the bottom three with a golden opportunity to cement an already strong position heading into a tough December.

The home form gives me confidence we’ll perform against Burnley on Wednesday, but we haven’t sparkled on our travels despite some decent results.

New manager bounce and a couple of good results have got the engine turning over for Norwich so this could be a difficult assignment.

Norwich

If you asked 100 football fans (outside of Norwich) if they thought the Canaries would be relegated, I’d wager 99 would say yes.

That’s what Dean Smith has inherited – a deeply ingrained belief that they’re heading straight back to the Championship.

The stats are equally damning. Not just the meagre points tally, but the seven goals scored (easily the lowest in the league) and the whopping 27 conceded (the highest in the league).

If there’s a whiff of hope, it’s the back-to-back wins against Brentford and Southampton, showing they can compete and get their fair share against teams in the bottom half.

Despite our lofty position, they’ll be looking at this game and next Tuesday’s six-pointer at Newcastle as a big opportunity to put themselves back in the survival picture.

Whatever the results, there’s no question they’ll have to enter the market in January and recruit well if they’re to have any chance because I don’t think the current squad can do it.

The home end

Some thoughts lifted from the pre-match through on a popular Norwich forum.

Everyone confident of a third straight win? Decent side are Wolves but a repeat of that second half on Saturday should keep the run going.

A point would be a good result. I am feeling more confident after Saturday , not just because we won as we could easily have lost … Yet our manager was able to change the way we played when needed and I think he will be shrewd enough to put a side out that will give Wolves a good game.

Avoiding defeat is the main object because that would set things right back. Three points would be nice but I wouldn’t be too upset with one. The main thing is a decent performance and looking like we belong in this league.

Wolves’ current league position is partially down to a fortunate start to the season fixture-wise – they will be in and around us by the end of the season. They have only played Man U and a misfiring Spurs of the ‘big 6’ and lost both. The only surprise result for me is that West Ham didn’t beat them. They don’t score or concede many. It’ll be like Brighton and we can match up and go toe-to-toe. I fancy another 2-1. 

I think they’ll comfortably finish mid-table, possibly top ten. Would love a win, but would take a draw if offered it now.

Just shows how important wins are, Wolves have lost only 1 less than Newcastle yet in the top 6 courtesy of 6 wins. Our first 10 games yielded so few points and already put us so far behind most in this division that getting good results from just those around us or lower mid table will not be enough  for survivability. Hence we have to somehow pick up points, wins to be honest, against teams like Wolves. They are a decent side, in good form and beating them would be even more impressive than the win against Saints.

Wolves

I can’t see any changes from the team that saw off West Ham, unless there are injuries or Bruno has picked up on some detail about the way Norwich play.

I would never have selected Podence last weekend and it took him a good while to grow into the game, but once he did he caused them a lot of problems.

There’s no doubt he’s at his best when the team are up the pitch and he can use that low centre of gravity to turn in tight spaces and manufacture shots and final passes. He’s the opposite of Traore in that his overall play isn’t spectacular but he does produce the goods.

Other than that one outside forward position, the team feels pretty settled and everyone knows their job. I think that’s the way to get results in the Premier League.

Last time out

We doubled Norwich the last time they were in the Premier League. They battered us in the first half at Carrow Road but somehow only went in one goal ahead. Once Romain Saiss equalised they wilted and Raul smashed in the winner after good play by Neto down the left.

At Molineux, it was a routine home victory for Wolves with Diogo Jota scoring twice and Raul getting the third after Jota’s hat-trick attempt came back off the post

Predictions

Well done to St.Kitts Wolves and KENDAL WOLVES for correctly guessing the 1-0 scoreline against West Ham last weekend. Both collect a maximum.

Brompton Wolf leads the way at the top of the overall table at the end of Gameweek 12.

As always, if you’d like to join in, it’s simple – just leave your prediction in the comment section below using the boxes provided. Then repeat for every preview article throughout the season, making sure you always use the same email address to make your prediction. Your email is what ties you to your overall score.

You can read my prediction for the game in the comment section below.

Up The Wolves!

Polite request – when commenting in the preview article after the game has finished, can you not place score predictions in the boxes, please? It confuses the system. Many thanks.

‘No easy games in the Premier League’ is one of English football’s more popular phrases.

Norwich didn’t get the memo.

Professional performance. Never got out of second gear. A comfortable win. Frankly, none of that does this afternoon justice.

It was a cakewalk.

After Thursday’s exertions, you couldn’t have offered Wolves a more perfect 90 minutes.

Nuno’s men effectively had the day off, rested up nicely for the trip to Espanyol. Perfect.

I was actually fretting over the visit of a technically efficient Norwich outfit.

Throughout Nuno’s reign we have struggled versus teams who couple relentless pressing with a sharp passing game. The first half at Carrow Road in December being a good example.

I needn’t have worried.

Norwich’s press was nowhere to been seen, and once they became bored of passing the ball around without much purpose for the opening 15 minutes, the outcome was inevitable.

Kudos to Nuno for switching to 352 and packing the midfield. The Canaries’ press and high tempo was nowhere to be seen, Donk justified Nuno’s faith with an all-action display, and Jota and Raul thrived up front together.

While I’m still unconvinced by Donk as a midfielder against better opposition – the Belgian’s anonymous displays earlier in the season hampered Neves and our overall style of play – you can’t argue with today’s showing.

Tackles, interceptions, passes, bursts forwards aplenty.

The benefits of 352 are there to see. Jota is at his direct best, Raul has his partner in crime back, and the absence of a currently quiet Traore leaves Doc with the entire right flank to explore.

Maybe it’s a case of making the most of Jota’s latest purple patch and then revisiting 343 with a refreshed Traore?

And how strong does our bench look with Adama, Neto and Podence to all call upon?

Nuno would call them ‘solutions’. He’s got a few up his sleeve just now.