EXCLUSIVE COLUMNIST I think they’ve got a really, really good head coach’ – Iwan Roberts on Stoke.
It’s strange how football works; Norwich City play Stoke this weekend, and I’ve seen them the previous two Saturdays at the Bet365 Stadium.
I was there the other week when Cardiff defeated them on penalties in the FA Cup, and, to be fair, you know what it’s like: fourth round of the cup, two teams from the same tier; it’s the last thing they want. Cardiff made nine changes, while Mark Robins made ten, yet it was truly a great game. I saw them at the weekend when my old friend Robbo won only his second league game; they had lost to Bristol City the previous week, so he needed it.
When you go to Stoke – and I know the lads aren’t going to Stoke – you have to compete and battle because they’re tough and physical.
Burger chases City’s Kenny McLean at Carrow Road earlier this season (Image: PA Images). Their first two goals against Swansea came from set pieces, and the two centre halves are dangerous on corner kicks and free kicks. They have Wouter Burger, a centre midfielder who I believe may play in the Premier League. He scored the first one, and he’s a good player who cannot be categorised or boxed. I think he has a little bit of everything: he’s six foot three, he has a terrific engine, he’s good from corner kicks and free kicks, he gets himself in the box, and he timed his runs into the penalty area perfectly.
They have young Lewis Koumas, Jason’s son, on loan from Liverpool; he’s been hit and miss. However, two young players at the outset of their careers could face off: Kellen Fisher, who is in his first full season at Norwich, and Koumas, who plays on the left flank for Stoke. That will be a very intriguing battle. I believe Kellen will be looking forward to trying to hold Koumas at bay, while Koumas will be looking forward to trying to get the best of Kellen. Are Stoke on the rise under Robins? I believe he has, to some extent, stemmed the rot. I’ve been there twice, and the crowds have really become behind them. I think they can see progress, I think they think they have got a top class manager at this level. And I think they are right. I was gutted when Robbo got the sack at Coventry – he came within a whisker of Premier League football and seconds of an FA Cup final last season and had a lot to deal with at Coventry.
Stoke manager Mark Robins (Image: PA Images.) He had a difficult seven years there, but he resolved them, and I believe Stoke fans will want to see him do the same if he is given the time and backing, which I am confident he will receive from the owners. They have to be cautious due to financial fair play regulations, but I believe they have a very excellent head coach. Stoke were, of course, a Premier League team for many years, with Tony Pulis as manager. They’ve always had a bit of a reputation for being long ball and physical, thanks to Rory Delap’s long throw-in back in the day. But from what I’ve seen in the last two games and from what I’ve seen at Coventry over the last four or five seasons, under Mark Robbins, he will get them to try and play and I think he’s got the players to do that. He’s got good, capable, technical players there to work with.
Luke Williams left Swansea City this week, making him the 12th manager in the Championship to lose his position. Half of the Championship’s clubs have changed their head coach/manager since the beginning of the season. In the bottom half of the table, only QPR and Portsmouth share the same manager. I don’t believe QPR were ever in peril; they flirted with the bottom three right before Christmas. Portsmouth, on the other hand, deserves credit; they believe in themselves and I believe they will succeed. They’re motivated by the terraces; I was there last Tuesday, and it’s one of the noisiest areas; you have to go there and calm them down.
But that’s the nature of the footballing beast.
People talk of long-term projects and patience, and the management here needs some time. I just don’t think you understand it now; you may have all the best intentions in the world and say, ‘He’ll be our manager for the next three or four years, blah, blah, blah. He’s young, this is the plan, we need to lower the average age, and he’s the man to accomplish it and lead us ahead’.
If they go on a bad run, what happens?
Swansea must have believed Williams was the appropriate man to lead the team forward. I’m sure Stoke thought Alex Neil was the best man to lead them forward, and I’m sure Millwall did as well. Williams has lost eight of his last ten games; any manager would be under pressure. You cannot come in with only a short-term plan. The duration of the plan and the manager’s involvement are determined by the results. I was asked soon after the weekend, “Is Johannes Hoff Thorup out of his depth?” And I’m like, “Really?”
He’s 36 years old, he’s moved to a new nation, he’s joined a brand new football club, and I think he’s done exceptionally well in such a short period of time, given everything he’s had to cope with, including getting to know his squad, the city, and the surroundings. With 13 games left, they are still in the play-off picture, four points behind sixth and seven points behind fifth-placed Blackburn – who they meet in a week… That, in my opinion, is not too horrible.
Only Leeds has scored more goals, but my main concern and question is whether he can organise a defence. Because that is a huge Achilles heel. Look at the three at the top; they have far more clean sheets than everybody else. Norwich, on the other hand, has maintained their position as the third-lowest. It is not good enough. I remember talking to Malky Mackay after he was promoted with Cardiff. He stated that if your team keeps 20 clean sheets, you would be promoted 99 times out of 100 (although this may not be true this year; Burnley has 24 clean sheets but is five points behind second).
This may sound unusual coming from a centre striker, but you build your team from the back. If you get your back line and custodian organised, well-drilled and all on the same page, you have a chance.
Sargent rock
Josh Sargent had impeccable timing at Hull. (Image: PA Images) City faced Hull, a team fighting for their lives, on a surface that isn’t ideal because they play rugby on it; it’s arguably one of the worst in the Championship. They were down a goal, but there was a nice response, including a really good goal from the centre forward’s perspective, a great run across the near post by Josh Sargent and a good header, a great throw in from Kellen Fisher, and excellent work from the tiny squirrel! They were disappointed not to win because they performed well in the second half but were unable to score the second goal.
If they had collected four points from their previous two games, I would have taken a point at Hull. However, taking one point from the prior two is a bit of a kick in the teeth. Sargent’s goal made it five in five after returning from injury and being eased back into the game; that’s an excellent record. Where could they have been if he hadn’t been gone for, what, two months? That is a long time. He has only started 17 of his 20 league and cup games. There are ifs and buts, but you’re talking about one of the league’s best centre forwards. Looking at some of the forwards currently playing in the Premier League, for teams in that bottom half – they’re not a patch on Josh Sargent. He would absolutely do a job for one of them.
If he can score seven more goals between now and the end of the season (13 games), clubs will be interested. That would also imply that if he has played all of the games until the end of the season, he has demonstrated his fitness and overcome his injuries. And he’s just 24. He is at the beginning of his career. I don’t mind if the ball goes in off my backside for a goal; there’s nothing wrong with that – but every goal has been excellent. His two goals against Swansea were excellent finishes, as was the one on Saturday, and he made his run before the ball was crossed. He’s taking the gamble and I love seeing that as a former centre forward, because it’s all about being in the right place at the right time.
He might do that run fifty times. When he fails to do so, the ball enters that area. It’s all about being prepared in the moment, anticipating and taking a risk. If you don’t take a chance, you don’t win. His greatest goal came against Derby, when Emi Marcondes fed him – a fantastic finish, and he hit the ball so cleanly.
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