Norwich being rewarded for an utter failure of imagination

As predicted, Norwich went down to cheers and bunting. sticking to their principles, a £ 16million profit, sensible, sound financial health — and useless, of course. Absolutely useless.

As insipid a performance as in 2005 when, on a final day when no relegation places had yet been decided, Norwich ensured they occupied one by losing 6-0 at Fulham.

No West Ham player had scored four goals in a game since david cross against tottenham in 1981, but Michail Antonio managed it at carrow road and he isn’t even a recognised striker.

He did, however, cost money — £7m from Nottingham Forest in 2015, which is substantially more than Norwich spent to stay in the premier League.

so it was no great surprise, this denouement. Nor the clamour to reshape Norwich’s departure as a noble triumph. For those who view football as an aerobic form of accountancy, Norwich are the perfect club.

Now they will be rewarded again, with a £40m parachute payment to guard against the drop to championship revenue.

What a waste of money. Why are Norwich being compensated for an outcome they made close to inevitable?

Give it to Aston Villa if they go down. At least they had a go. that is what the parachute payments are for. they are have-a-go money. they’re a free bet.

if a bookmaker gives you a free bet, don’t put in on the even money shot to win a fiver. conjure up a six-way accumulator and try to get that Ferrari. it’s free. Have some fun.

And that’s what the parachute payment is: £40m a club can spend because, whatever happens, they’re going to get it back. it’s designed to create competition. And Norwich did not spend it. they were not competitive.

if Norwich do not pick up another three points from matches against chelsea, Burnley and Manchester city, they will be in the worst six teams in premier League history: 555th of 560.

that’s not principled, that’s not admirable — that’s an utter failure of imagination.

the counter-argument is that Aston Villa spent £143m and could still go down. Fulham spent £100m and were relegated in 2018-19.

All true. But this presumes every investment goes bad. sheffield United came up with Norwich, spent £60m, and may qualify for europe. if that had gone wrong for them, twothirds of it would have been recouped via parachute payments.

even Aston Villa would get roughly 28 per cent back that way, plus money from the inevitable sales of

Jack Grealish and tyrone Mings. so for Norwich to end up in substantial profit, and relegated, where is the triumph in that? they are better placed for life in the championship? says who? parachute payments offer no guarantees as far as the football goes. Last season’s relegated clubs are currently fourth, sixth and 20th in the second tier. those who went down the year before are second, seventh and 17th. it’s a hard scrabble league — Norwich manager daniel Farke (below) reckons it is the toughest in europe. the parachute payments are there to help clubs steer clear of it. indeed, given that the championship play-off final is regularly described as the most lucrative game in football, why is there so much snobbery about investment? Huddersfield, who in 2019 finished where Norwich almost certainly will this year, received £96.62m in their last premier League season.

their commercial revenue will have been enhanced, too. Estimates of the value of promotion reach as much as £170m. Yet let’s be conservative, and cap it at £100m. Norwich lost £38m last year, so pay that debt off. then they invested £25m on improvements at the training ground.

this still leaves £37m. And while wages and expenses must be paid, much of that will be covered by commercial and matchday revenue streams.

So it isn’t that Norwich couldn’t afford to mount a stronger campaign, it is that they chose not to. And shopping in the basement brings its own difficulties.

Norwich took three players on loan, and three went back to their parent clubs early. Farke said ondrej Duda from hertha Berlin, the only one who remains, was a £25m player, but he is yet to score or assist a goal.

You don’t always get what you pay for in football, but you certainly get what you don’t pay for. Farke said that without investment, Norwich had a five per cent chance of surviving, and he overestimated.

since relegation, Norwich’s fans have been encouraged to remember the good times. Most specifically, september 14, 2019, when they beat Manchester City 3-2. Yet anyone can have a good day against Manchester City.

Wolves did, home and away this season, southampton did, earlier this month. Crystal Palace, Leicester, Newcastle, even Wigan — they’ve all had good days against Manchester City in recent years.

Yet taking pride in one game, one brilliant 90 minutes, isn’t resolve or resistance. that’s a cup run masquerading.

Whoever goes down this season will deserve their demotion, but in most cases will have fought all the way.

Not on the pitch necessarily, but off it. they will have invested, but not smartly. they will have strategised, but not well. they will have made mistake after mistake after mistake. But at least they tried.

At least they didn’t miserably cash in their free bet.