Thorup could unearth Duffy upgrade in dominant Norwich academy graduate.
Norwich City ended their run of seven matches without a win in the Championship by thrashing Wayne Rooney’s struggling Plymouth Argyle side 6-1 at Carrow Road on Tuesday night.
A second hat-trick of the season for Borja Sainz and goals from Shane Duffy, Anis Ben Slimane, and Ante Crnac wrapped up all three points for Johannes Hoff Thorup’s team in impressive fashion.
It has been an odd campaign to assess for the Danish head coach with plenty of good and bad moments, as well as many injury and suspension issues to deal with.
He was still without talisman Josh Sargent, midfield maestro Marcelino Nunez, dominant defender Jose Cordoba, and England U21 international Kellen Fisher for the clash with Plymouth, whilst captain Kenny McLean played for the first time in four games after a suspension.
Josh Sargent of the U.S. reacts
One player who had a particularly interesting evening against The Pilgrims was central defender Duffy, whose performance somewhat summed up the entire season for the team.
Shane Duffy’s performance against Plymouth
The Ireland international scored his second goal of the campaign in the second half to make it 3-1 to the Canaries, rising highest to brilliantly guide Emi Marcondes’ corner into the back of the net.
It was his third league goal for Norwich, from an xG tally of 4.24, and it came after he should have scored in the first half, blazing an effort over the bar from point-blank range after McLean flicked a corner on at the near post.
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Duffy’s use of the ball also came with mixed success. He completed a whopping 104 passes but left a lot to be desired after two poor concessions of possession directly led to shots for Plymouth.
The veteran defender also lost four of his five ground duels, as opposition forwards were too quick for the centre-back to deal with at times.
However, as you can see in the clip above, it was his aggressive interception and positive pass that sparked the move for Sainz’s second goal of the game.
It was a match that showcased the best and the worst of Duffy, who provides a fantastic aerial presence and aggression to Norwich’s play out of possession, but who can also be guilty of coughing up the ball in dangerous areas and struggling against quick attackers.
Shane Duffy’s performances this season
The 32-year-old colossus, who joined on a free transfer from Fulham in the summer of 2023, has started all 17 of the club’s Championship games this season, which speaks to how much Thorup trusts him to perform each week.
As was illustrated in the clash with Plymouth, Duffy has generally struggled to deal with forwards in challenges on the ground this season, losing 59% of his duels on the deck.
Whereas, his aerial duel success rate of 64% shows that he has, largely, dealt with crosses and long balls. This helps the Canaries to deal with set-pieces and with teams who boast tall or physically impressive centre-forwards, who could bully or dominate weaker centre-backs in the air.
