In order to control the atmosphere at Fratton Park tonight, Norwich manager Johannes Hoff Thorup has laid out his strategy for his players.
The Dane has also explained why he thinks the Canaries may gain an advantage by keeping Pompey’s supporters quiet.
Under the Fratton lights this evening, John Mousinho’s team hopes to move out of the Championship drop zone; a win would ensure that reward.
However, Thorup has his own plans to make sure that doesn’t happen. Norwich wants to get back to winning ways after scoring ten goals in two games before to their Saturday loss to QPR.
The 35-year-old is confident in his ability to subdue the Fratton supporters and Pompey’s high-pressing style, which has recently produced better results.
Thorup thinks his squad will have to handle some moments if Mousinho’s team picks up speed, but controlling the ball will weaken Pompey’s support, and Norwich may benefit from reducing the volume.
“The best way to kill the momentum in a stadium is to go there and play a lot of passes, especially from goal kicks,” Thorup stated during Norwich’s pregame press conference.
“You should think about this when you’re travelling away from home because if you win a few times and kill their pressure, you kill their momentum, their intensity, and most of the time, the stadium atmosphere as well.”
Naturally, though, you must acknowledge that you can’t always do that and that there are additional variants.
On the other side, you can take advantage of the atmosphere in Fratton Park.
They can sense it as a home team if the crowd suddenly stops cheering them on or if it’s not as boisterous as it usually is.
In reality, it becomes something that works against them.
So, it’s something we can utilise, and we can certainly discuss it and plan our approach.
Additionally, there are times when the crowd is boisterous and supportive. In order to resolve the issues and deal with the situations, there will be times when we must stand by one another. It is undoubtedly a significant factor.
