As Daniel Farke tries to explain Norwich’s Championship rise from finishing 14th last May to occupying first place this February he selects a suitable comparison.
‘Even last season I got the feeling we were heading in the right direction,’ he begins. ‘We were third or fourth in all the statistics we wanted: possession and passing and creating chances. Our biggest problem was shooting accuracy. We were 24th in the league.
‘You have to bring this ball over this line and into this rectangle. It is not like synchronised swimming, where you are judged by your unbelievably beautiful performance. We had some really, really nice performances last season but we missed opportunities to score. We are better this season.’
Norwich boss Daniel Farke has masterminded Norwich's rise to the top of the Championship
Farke admits his philosophy was initially difficult to implement, but he stuck by his values
After working hard beneath the surface, Norwich’s artistry is finally causing ripples. For much of the campaign national attention has been elsewhere but a resounding 3-1 win at Leeds last weekend took Farke’s side top and ahead of Sunday’s derby match against Ipswich they are odds-on to go up.
Given Norwich sold their best player in James Maddison last summer, as part of a strategy that has raised more than £55million in total, the team’s position under Farke is a triumph of planning, belief, and coaching.
Recruitment has been spectacular too. Striker Teemu Pukki, signed on a free after leaving Brondby, has scored 18 goals. Winger Emiliano Buendia, who cost £1.5m from Getafe, is one of the players of the season.
Then there are the academy graduates. Jamal Lewis and Max Aarons have emerged to prominence in the full-back roles, while Ben Godfrey and Todd Cantwell are impressing in defence and midfield respectively. None is over 21.
This was the vision Stuart Webber had in mind when he left Huddersfield to become Norwich sporting director in 2017 and set about drastically reshaping the club. First he appointed Farke, who had been managing Borussia Dortmund’s second team. Webber had also taken David Wagner from the same role to Huddersfield with unprecedented success. But this was a different job entirely and Farke is a different head coach.
‘My deep belief in one word? Dominance,’ he tells Sportsmail during an hour-long conversation in his office at the club’s Colney training ground.
The German manager was in conversation with Sportsmail's Laurie Whitwell
‘We want to be the protagonists. If we could chose we would have the ball for 90 minutes. We want to play with passes. We can’t guarantee success but we can work on having a big opportunity to win games.’
That philosophy reached glorious fruition at Elland Road where Norwich picked apart Marcelo Bielsa’s side with frequency to leapfrog into first. It has required patience though. There have been times when supporters became restless at an approach that was yielding modest results.
But Norwich kept faith in Farke, who is now guiding the club towards the Premier League. ‘There were much easier options for me to choose,’ he says. ‘I could have done this as a native speaker in Germany and not just in the second tier. But my gut feeling was this is exactly the place I want to be. We can create something special.’
He adds: ‘You have to have a clear philosophy as a club, how you want to play, the work ethic, the atmosphere. We are all addicted to results. But the biggest chance to do that is to work in a methodical way. It’s important you are not too focused on public opinion.’
A strong relationship with owners Delia Smith and Michael
