Will Jennings: Norwich City fans jeering won't help players

Passing the ball straight to Anass Zaroury, one of the finest players to grace the Championship this season, was always going to end badly and the menacing Moroccan ruthlessly set the wheels in motion for a convincing Carrow Road triumph. 

Tim Krul - his error against Burnley was not quickly forgotten by Norwich City fans (Image: Paul Chesterton/Focus Images Ltd)

But the reaction from the home crowd, elements of the Lower Barclay in particular, was baffling, proceeding to audibly jeer the City goalkeeper whenever the ball came near him and, increasingly as the game wore on, growing frustrated whenever David Wagner’s team attempted to pass out from the back. 

Wagner’s surprise decision to drop Angus Gunn for his first two league games in charge was, to a certain extent, vindicated at Preston and Coventry, with a couple of Krul errors going unpunished and City strolling to eventually comfortable victories. 

Of course, Gunn was injured for the visit of Burnley last Saturday lunchtime but his absence only amplified the fact that Krul, never the best with his distribution, now often resembles an accident waiting to happen when given the City gloves.

But that said – what is the benefit of targeting your own keeper whose confidence had taken an obvious hit after such a high-profile mistake?

Krul then spilling two straightforward shots highlighted his mental fragility – but the negative crowd reaction continued as Wagner’s side chased a first-half leveller. 

And it extended further than merely the City shot-stopper.

Whenever the recently-revived axis of Grant Hanley, Andrew Omobamidele and Kenny McLean attempted to beat the Burnley press, the Carrow Road crowd continued to grow restless and demand we pump the ball forwards to get us out of trouble.

Wasn’t that the sort of football that triggered such fervent anti-Dean Smith sentiment earlier in the season?

And, were City fans not pining for a manager who could implement an identifiable, more principled style of play?

Naturally, there may be times when those principles need to be sacrificed slightly and, against possibly one of the best-coached teams of the modern Championship era, you could argue Saturday may have been a sensible moment to do so.

But the point remains – it feels like the Carrow Road crowd have reached boiling point in recent months and, despite the departure of Smith, are still desperate to pounce on any form of individual error.

That’s not to single out any specific area of the ground – and I last week renewed my season ticket in the Lower Barclay – but merely stating that there’s nothing productive in putting your own players under more pressure so early in such a big match.

Obviously, it’s nothing new – we witnessed a similar pattern during the early days of Daniel Farke’s era in the City hotseat, in addition to more recently during that dismal 2-0 defeat against Blackburn at the start of the festive period.

But given the fact we’ve picked up just 19 points at home this season – compared to 23 away – there is unequivocally more the crowd could be doing to pro-actively benefit their team in their own backyard. 

Of course, the addition of flags and a drummer at certain games are admirable and have without doubt enhanced the positivity around the place in recent weeks.

But this is not so much a point about those sort of initiatives as one about an underlying negativity that seems to persist, one that manifested itself towards Krul on Saturday and then growingly against the team’s tactics as the game progressed. 

Wagner’s way will naturally take time to gel and, on an afternoon that brought us plummeting back down to earth, it did look as though City were trying to beat the Championship’s standout team at their own game.

But with 17 crucial clashes remaining and an average of two points per game likely to be required for a shot at the play-offs, our home form will without doubt be pivotal in making or breaking our top-six hopes.

It’s obviously down to Wagner to continue revolutionising the misfiring squad he inherited – but the least we can do is get behind his philosophy and players: particularly at Carrow Road.