Norwich City (H) | Schumacher's Preview
Tuesday was a bad night for Steven Schumacher and his Argyle side, as they lost 4-1 at Bristol City, playing in an unusually lacklustre fashion.
For the manager, the aftermath of that loss has been a delicate balancing act. Addressing the defeat and the causes of it, but not dwelling on what was frankly the only poor performance from the first nine games of the season.
Speaking to Argyle TV, Schumacher said that the City defeat was spoken about as a group on Thursday, before preparations switched to Saturday’s home game against Norwich City.
“We’re not proud of the performance on Tuesday night,” Schumacher said. “Far from it. We didn't feel it was good reflection of what our team is all about. We have spoken about it as a group. We had the lads in, had a meeting and went through a few things. It's not to do with technical errors or whatever, it’s just pure basics and fundamentals that we have to follow as a team.
“Last year we showed that when we are below 100%, then we don't get anything from the games. We have to be at our maximum every week for us to get the points or, in this division, to even compete.
“We've set ourselves standards over the last couple of seasons. When you drop below it, then you get what you deserve - and that's what we did on Tuesday.
“I know that the lads are an honest group. We’re a team, not just the staff and the players, not us and them. We’re a team. We're all in it together. We're all hurting from Tuesday night and when you can sit openly and talk about it, once everyone can own it, then it gives you the chance to put it right and do something about it in the next game.
“It's when you, when you just brush it under the carpet, not analyse actually what's gone wrong, then people could still make the same mistake. Hopefully we've learned from that from Tuesday night.
“It's nothing to mull over for too long. We've analysed it, we've spoken about it, and we drew a line under it. We're focusing on Norwich now, which is going to be another, another tough game on Saturday.”
Norwich come to PL2 sitting fifth in the early Sky Bet Championship table, and would be considered one of the favourites for promotion, despite a mid-table finish last season.
Managed by former Schalke and Huddersfield Town boss David Wagner, Norwich met fellow promotion hopefuls Leicester City live on Sky Sports on Wednesday night, and despite losing 2-0 at home, were very competitive in a high-quality encounter.
“We're going to have to be 100% at our best to compete with Norwich on Saturday because they're going to be one of the best teams in the league,” said Schumacher. “They've got one of the best managers in the league for sure, and players who have got so much quality.
“I thought the game on Wednesday night was a really good game. The Championship standard was top draw. Leicester are obviously really strong and came out on top in the game, but throughout the whole 90 minutes, Norwich were always a threat, especially in the second half. They created a few good chances. Maybe they could have been a bit more clinical with one or two of them that they got.
“Everybody that came on the pitch, all their subs, brought something extra to their team. It's going to be a really tough game.”
Home Park will be sold out once again this Saturday, as it has been for every league game this season. After being backed by around 6,000 members of the Green Army over the two games on the road in the last week, Schumacher is hoping for another wholly enjoyable Home Park afternoon, of which there have been plenty in recent months and years.
“The support was phenomenal this week at Preston and Bristol City,” said Schumacher. “Unfortunately, we couldn't manage to reward that support with any points, but we'll do everything that we possibly can to get some points from this game on Saturday.
“Home Park is the best place to play when it's bouncing, when it's rocking. I know that the lads will be doing their best to try to respond, and to put on a good performance that's enough to take something from the game.”
