Salt was poured into the relegation wound at Carrow Road as West Ham eased to a 4-0 win. David Freezer looks at the main talking points from Norwich City’s latest defeat.
Sighs of dejection
So, nice weather we're having, isn't it? A lovely sunny Sunday to enjoy with friends and family.
Seen any good films recently? I'd recommend Coda. Not your typically pretentious Oscar winner but an uplifting tale that will make you laugh and really stay with you.
Benedict Cumberbatch western Power of the Dog, on the other hand, I would very much recommend avoiding.
Talking of two hours of my life I’d like back...
Norwich City were in Premier League action at Carrow Road on Sunday. Well, they were playing a Premier League team, at least.
Despite West Ham arriving just three days after Europa League semi-final heartbreak in Frankfurt, and having played 14 games more than Norwich this season, the already-relegated Canaries players were so bereft of confidence that the visitors barely needed to get out of second gear.
‘Decent crowd for a pre-season friendly’, quipped a City fan on Twitter just before kick-off. With significant patches of empty seats, the attendance would have comfortably been the lowest of the season, were it not for the packed away end.
With a top-half finish already sealed and European qualification to chase, David Moyes’ impressive Londoners were already 2-0 up with a third of the game played, with Tim Krul culpable for both although thanks to a hefty deflection off Max Aarons as Said Benrahma opened the scoring.
When Michail Antonio made it 2-0 just after the half-hour mark, thanks to a fortunate bounce, the boos rang out and the home fans angrily chanted ‘what the hell was that’ and ‘that’s why we’re going down’.
When Jarrod Bowen slashed wide from point-blank range a minute later, the boos were a touch more vociferous, before thoughts turned to whether it was worth going back to the put at half-time – only for Benrahma to rifle home a cross from the outstanding Bowen for 3-0 just before the whistle.
The ease with which West Ham cut through City in the build-up to so many of their chances was all too obvious, as confident players worked their way through with superior technical ability.
Did we learn anything new?
In short: not really. The one change to the City team from the relegation-sealing defeat at Aston Villa was Jacob Sorensen returning from three months on the bench after an injury, due to a thigh issue which kept Mathias Normann out.
The Dane’s name drew the biggest cheer from the home fans as the teams came out but alongside the unphysical presence of Billy Gilmour in the deeper-lying midfield roles, there was very little in the way of defensive ballast in the engine room.
You can take into account that any promoted team are going to feel the impact of seven players being unavailable but the time for judgement of whether this group is good enough has long gone.
Would the availability of Ozan Kabak, Kenny McLean, Josh Sargent or Adam Idah have made a significant difference? The bleak situation and lack of hope to cling to suggest that it would take a phenomenal effort for anyone to provide a positive element now.
Dean Smith reacted at half-time by bringing on Lukas Rupp for Pierre Lees-Melou and giving youngster Tony Springett his debut in place of Milot Rashica – sprinting down the left and winning a corner within 30 seconds.
His energy was evident but the 19-year-old was fighting a losing battle, joining his team-mates in yearning for full-time after Manuel Lanzini made it 4-0 with a penalty in the 65th minute, after VAR spotted an unnecessary Sorensen handball during aerial battle.
Cruelty personified
‘We thought we’d scored’ and ‘if we score, we’re on the pitch’ provided the gallows humour as City were denied a consolation within three minutes of the restart.
Hammers keeper Lukasz Fabianski flapped at a Kieran Dowell corner and Sam Byram turned in the loose ball from close range, to defiant cheers of at least something to celebrate.
It seemed a player who has recovered from an injury nightmare had a personal moment of vindication – and his first goal since scoring for Leeds in December 2015. Enter VAR.
Replays clearly showed the defender had used his hand to control the ball before scoring. It looked accidental but the handball laws do not concern themselves with intent when it comes to the scoring of goals.
Top-flight torment
Remember back in August, when we were all excited about supporters returning to stadiums for a Premier League campaign.
The result? Almost certainly the worst performance on home soil of City’s 27 seasons as a top-flight club.
Twelve home defeats equals the club’s top-tier low, set in 2019-20 on Daniel Farke’s watch – with a game left to claim that one outright.
Conceding four makes it 38 in the home net at Carrow Road in the league this season, claiming the club’s top-flight record that was set two seasons ago, when 37 were conceded.
And if Champions League-chasing Spurs aren’t beaten on the final day, it will be the first time a Norwich City team have won just three home league matches in a season.
The loudly ironic cheers as substitute Przemek Placheta thumped City’s first shot on target in the 72nd minute, straight into Fabianski’s arms, summed up the travails.
Painful process
Psychologists describe the five stages of grief as: denial, anger, bargaining, depression and, finally, acceptance.
There are far worse things in life than relegation from the Premier League, clearly, but it feels like Canaries fans have already progressed through those stages.
The only problem is, there are still three difficult games to play. The rearranged trip to Leicester on Wednesday is against a team that have under-performed but are still in a good position to finish in the top half.
Another away game follows at Wolves next Sunday, with the prospect of European qualification still alive, before Tottenham arrive in Norfolk on the final day with a Champions League place to chase.
Acceptance that this City squad are not good enough and that the club was heading back to the Championship has long since settled in.
The longing for a fresh start could make those games rather difficult to endure though, unless Dean Smith can find a way to motivate a group of players that haven’t stopped trying but are clearly bereft of confidence and belief.
The full-time whistle was barely greeted with more boos, with the game long over as a contest.
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