Chris Hughton’s Norwich are just two points clear of the relegation zone after yesterdays 2-0 defeat at Everton
Norwich City lost 2-0 at Everton yesterday, which is no disgrace considering the Toffees lofty position in the Premier League table.
However, the defeat coupled with other results leaves Norwich just two points above the relegation zone in a very tight Premier League table.
Trouble
The Canaries look to be in trouble at the moment. The Canaries have failed to win in their last six games in all competitions and cannot afford to keep losing games.
The side from Norfolk came into the game more late-on against Everton, but at that point the Toffees had taken their foot off the pedal.
Spending
Norwich boss Chris Hughton spent big by the Canaries standards in the summer. The Canaries boss brought in the likes of Rick van Wolfswinkel, Gary Hooper, Leroy Fer and Nathan Redmond. All four players are highly-rated and big things were expected from the new signings.
In fact, I believed that the Canaries could have been one of the surprise packages in the Premier League this season. The new signings were exciting ones and very ambitious from the Norwich board.
Van Wolfswinkel was the signing that caught my eye. The Holland international had scored goals in his homeland before moving to Portugal to play for Sporting Lisbon, where he also found the net on a pretty regular basis.
Norwich were missing a goalscorer and Van Wolfswinkel was brought in to spearhead the Canaries attack. However, the striker has scored just one top-flight goal this season and has struggled with injury problems.
Fer has been inconsistent this season, showing in patches the ability he possesses. Sometimes he looks like a world beater, yet at other times he looks like he would struggle to get into a Sunday league team. If he is going to be a success in the Premier League he needs to start to work a bit harder and gain some consistency.
Hooper has been a relative success this season. Like Van Wolfswinkel he has had injury problems since his switch to East Anglia. The former-Celtic striker has found the net five times in the top-flight this season.
If he is given the chances he will score goals and if Norwich does create chances more often than not Hooper will find the target. He has the natural finishing ability to score the goals that will ensure safety for the Canaries.
Redmond is regarded as one of the most exciting young English wingers. He has pace and trickery in his armoury and is a player that gets fans off their seats. Unfortunately the youngster has not been able to find any consistency in his performance and has often been used as a substitute.
Overall the signings have not had the impact that most Norwich fans would have wished from them. The Canaries fans must have been eager to see their new signings this season and Norwich’s summer business was thought of as very shrewd.
Norwich went into this season with a far stronger squad than last season, when they finished comfortably in midtable in 11th position. The Canaries were expected to move forward, but it just has not happened for the side from Norfolk.
Doubts
Canaries boss Hughton has done a good job at every club he has been at. He comes across as a nice guy and somebody that is very amiable. However, some have criticised for being too nice at times and maybe that has had an effect on his team.
The former-Newcastle boss has brought stability to a number of clubs and steadied the club when Paul Lambert left for Aston Villa. It was always going to be difficult to move Norwich forward and is struggling to do that at the moment.
Some Norwich fans are now questioning whether Hughton is the right man to keep the Canaries out of trouble this season.
Relegation
Even though the Canaries are just two points clear of the drop zone, I do not see them getting relegated this season. There should be enough in the Canaries squad to keep them in the top-flight. Hughton’s men face a vital home clash with Hull City next weekend, which they are favourites to win at odds of 6/5.
A victory against the Tigers could be the turning point of the season and the Canaries are in need of morale boosting victory to move them up the table.
Will Norwich be relegated this season?
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