PODCAST: City start with a splutter

Norwich City started their 2022-23 campaign in disappointing fashion, losing 1-0 to Steve Morison's Cardiff City.

Dean Smith was pleased with some elements of his side's play, but the Canaries took criticism from their supporters as worries over a lack of creativity continue to set in.

There were a number of performances to assess, from Jacob Sorensen's defensive midfield audition to Todd Cantwell's return to competitive City action. Our Norwich City correspondents did just that, alongside Pink Un columnist and Sportsbeat journalist Will Jennings.

Host Connor Southwell was joined by Jennings and Pink Un reporter Samuel Seaman for episode 499 of our long-running podcast.

Jennings understands fans' concerns, but believes it's too early to judge Smith's ability to lead City to promotion. He said: "It is the first game. Give Dean Smith and Craig Shakespeare a bit of time and wait for those new signings to come in and really beef up the midfield and add that extra layer of creativity.

"But, on the whole, (the away end) was fairly toxic by full-time. The main issue is this lack of cohesion. You watch these players and there doesn't seem to be a strategy or a crystallised plan in place for how to actually score a goal.

"Defensively it was fine, I thought Andrew Omobamidele was one of the few positives. He was really mature in possession, such a classy operator. It sounds ridiculous, saying defence wasn't an issue when one of your centre-backs gets sent off, but I think that end of the pitch looks fine.

"It's just in possession that we left so much to be desired. I want to give Smith and Shakespeare the credit, but the bulk of this squad is the one that went up two years ago and, based on yesterday, it's difficult to muster a great amount of enthusiasm."

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