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Marco Stiepermann on burying the hatchet with Teemu Pukki
Marco Stiepermann is loving life at Norwich City Picture: Paul Chesterton/Focus Images Ltd - Credit: Paul Chesterton/Focus Images Ltd
Norwich City’s Marco Stiepermann is in the form of his life after forging a ‘special’ double act with Championship top gun Teemu Pukki.
The Canaries’ pair have plundered 27 goals and 12 assists in a promotion push that is gathering pace ahead of Bristol City’s visit to Carrow Road.
Stiepermann, however, is at a loss to explain why he has hit it off with Pukki after being on opposite sides of the divide in German club football.
“Sometimes you just feel it,” he said. “If you work with a guy together on the pitch you just get this feeling that it works. He knows where he has to run, he knows when I can give him the pass.
“On the pitch and off the pitch we are always good together. That is special. You look at the second goal (at Bolton). I just knew he would get me that pass. I don’t know how I knew but I had to be in that position and to be quick. I waited for the pass and it came.
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“I didn’t watch too many games when he was at Schalke and I was at Dortmund.
“That is like Celtic and Rangers so I was not interested so much in what he was doing.
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“Yes I think I am on my best path so far in my career. I am 28 now, this is my peak, this is my best football age so I am really happy. I think I can still improve in scoring goals and giving more assists.
“Maybe it was normal you need a season or two when you come from outside England to adapt and settle in.
“I needed that year and it was good to have that, to learn the language, to know how the football works, to meet the other guys and now I am playing good football because I had this year.”
Stiepermann expects a stiff task against the in form Robins but is adamant there is no pressure on Daniel Farke’s squad after defying the odds to get in the promotion shake up.
“If you see how many players left the club after last season, and key players, like James Maddison, Josh Murphy, Angus Gunn and others, then you can see how good the team is behind the team,” he said.
“Look in terms of buying new players or free players like Teemu, who now has 24 goals. That shows how good the club is.
“We have this confidence. We are top of the league and we enjoy this position.
“We know we have a tough opponent on Saturday. They have not lost for many games but we are at home and there is just one target for us. That is to win this game.”