Lessons learned from Norwich City’s 2-1 defeat to Leicester

Time for Mbokani?

Saturday’s 2-1 home defeat to Leicester saw Dieumerci Mbokani score his first Norwich City goal since joining on loan from Dynamo Kyiv in late August. The Congolese international exquisitely flicked home a Jonny Howson cross in the 68th minute to bring the Canaries back into the game after a Jamie Vardy penalty and Jeffrey Schlupp strike put the Foxes two up. This came just moments after Mbokani’s bullet header crashed against the crossbar, as he seemingly relished the aerial battle with giant centre-back pairing Robert Huth and Wes Morgan.

Last season’s top scorer Cameron Jerome has proven that he has enough to disturb Premier League defences, as he did once more on Saturday, and the work he does for his side is sublime. His pace and strength is up there with the very best in the division, however, as led to his ultimate sale at Stoke and release from loan at Palace, he simply struggles to score Premier League goals. Jerome thrived in the Championship where he could more easily hassle defenders into mistakes, and his low conversion rate would not matter, as he would be presented 3 or 4 chances a match and, more often than not, would convert one of them. However, the Premier League is not so hospitable and Jerome’s lack of clinical edge is exposed at the higher level, as he spurned another relatively decent opportunity in front of the Barclay end in the early moments of Saturday’s game.

With this in mind, and Mbokani having shown glimpses of his abilities in his short cameo appearances prior to Saturday, and now with a goal behind him, could this be the time for the Congolese to earn his first start for the club, displacing the goal shy Jerome?

The return of Redmond

In contrast to recent weeks, Norwich’s performance on Saturday lacked direction and a sense of purpose. The half time statistics indicated that City had over 60% of first half possession, yet Kasper Schmeichel in the Leicester goal didn’t have to make one single save in vain. This statistic tells its own story, whilst Norwich dominated possession, unlike the week prior at Upton Park, they seemed to be completely void of ideas and creativity - which is unusual for a side with Wes Hoolahan in its ranks. This all changed however, with the introduction of Nathan Redmond. Fresh from his goal at West Ham, the England Under-21 winger, along with Mbokani, transformed Norwich’s fortunes and added the pace and drive to the side that was so dearly lacking in the first half proceedings. The young star led the late onslaught on the Foxes; very nearly scoring a late equaliser, as he forced an excellent save from Kasper Schmeichel and saw a shot deflected behind in injury-time. Redmond himself admitted that his recent performances were not up to the high standards of the opening weeks, stating that: “I wasn’t playing well, I didn’t have the effect against Bournemouth (a 3-1 home win) and Liverpool (a 1-1 away draw) as I was in the few games before that and the gaffer let me know that.” However, the impact he has had in his recent two substitute appearances suggest that his spark has well and truly been rekindled; and an on song Nathan Redmond is, quite simply, Norwich City’s biggest asset - an asset that must return to the starting eleven.

Who said 4-4-2 was dead?

Gradually in recent years the traditional 4-4-2 formation has increasingly become out of fashion. Managers have favoured packing the midfield with variations of the 4-5-1 formation, opting for only one, lone striker. However, if any doubters are in search of a case in point to prove that 4-4-2 can still be deployed to great effect then Ranieri’s Leicester, and in particular their performance at Carrow Road on Saturday, evidenced that, when executed well, the formation still has a prominent place in the modern game. The front pairing of Jamie Vardy and Shinji Okazaki knew their roles expertly, working relentlessly to pin the Norwich defence deep in their own half, harrying and hassling the likes of Russell Martin and Sebastien Bassong into long, hopeful balls, and, ultimately, mistakes.

Vardy, proving his English credentials, was a nuisance to the City defence all afternoon, playing on the shoulder of the last man, and earning his side a first half penalty as his persistence allowed him to nip in front of Sebastien Bassong, drawing a foul from the Cameroonian. However contentious the decision may have been, Vardy was clever, arguably playing for the penalty and irrespective of any Norwich complaints, it worked. It is this ruthless side of the game that Norwich may have to work on in order to be successful in the Premier League, as they begin to adapt to the league’s unforgiving surroundings. Vardy’s partner, Okazaki, dropped deeper - hounding the Norwich City midfield - and it was his perseverance in tracking back that led to the initial robbing of possession from Jonny Howson, deep in his own half, in the lead up to Leicester’s second goal.

With Alex Neil evidently reluctant to drop Cameron Jerome, and with two direct, out and out wingers, perfect for 4-4-2, in his ranks, could a similar approach to Leicester potentially be an option for the Scot in his attempts to accommodate Dieumerci Mbokani?

Whilst Saturday’s defeat resulted in huge disappointment - and a pessimistic Canary follower would now say that it is three games without a win - Alex Neil will have learned a lot, which he will be sure to use to his benefit as his side look to return to winning ways at Newcastle United following the international break.