Norwich’s August Review: defending must improve

With a two-week break from the Championship for internationals, this is a good time to review how all 24 teams have looked in their first five league games. Here’s our assessment of Norwich City.

What we said in pre-season

“Energizing leaders are now in place at Norwich City, who boast some of the Championship’s best attacking quality. Striker Nelson Oliveira showed his class last year and could shine with more starts. If Angus Gunn settles quickly and the defence improves, this new era at Carrow Road could get off to a promising start. 3rd“

Have they surprised us so far?

The Canaries certainly shouldn’t be in the relegation zone after five games, having conceded more goals (12) than any other team. With a lot of big characters having left the club though, 13 new faces coming in and old ones adapting to a new system, the poor August is not a complete shock. There has been a lot of change at the club which had to happen, but also necessitates a degree of patience at this early stage.

The positives

Norwich have shown their creative side with two of the best assists of the Championship season so far. The timeless Wes Hoolahan came off the bench at Craven Cottage to play an inch-perfect looping ball for Nelson Oliveira to score the equalizer, before his ill-advised celebration. Oliveira, who averages a goal every 80 minutes this season, also latched onto a clever pass from Mario Vrancic to net the opener against QPR.

The negatives

Norwich’s attacking play has been excellent in flashes, which makes it all the more frustrating that they can be cut by the most simple, route one football. Whether they play with two centre-backs in Christoph Zimmerman and Marcel Franke, or whether the duo are joined by stalwart Russ Martin, they look like they could concede at any point. If we’re being lenient on left-back James Husband, he’s suffering from a lack of match practice.

Late business?

There have been reports linking Norwich with goalscoring centre-back Aden Flint of Bristol City and Leeds’ gritty wide man, Stuart Dallas. Early signs suggest though that they need a powerful central midfielder to provide industry next to Harrison Reed in the more physical encounters. The Canaries won’t win many games with a team comprised solely of technicians.

The Football Lab’s Grade

It might seem generous to give Norwich’s start anything higher than an F, but in fleeting moments they have shown what they can do at their best. The team had better adapt while calls for patience remain valid. E