Heroic striker finishes with 21 goals in 2014-15
NORWICH City rose to the occasion in beating Middlesbrough to a place in the Premier League, according to one of their Wembley heroes Cameron Jerome.The Canaries’ top goalscorer got the ball rolling with his 12th-minute opener before in-form Nathan Redmond picked his spot for the second moments later.
Alex Neil’s men held off the Teessiders for the remaining 75 minutes to wrap up a comfortable win that takes them back to, according to Jerome, their rightful division.
“It means so much to the football club; the players, the fans, the owners and everyone associated with Norwich City. We’re back in the Premier League where we belong,” he told reporters.
“It’s such a high to win at a place like Wembley. In a game of such magnitude, it’s amazing.”
Jerome, who had a short spell at Middlesbrough as a youth player, robbed former City defender Dani Ayala of possession before coolly finishing past Dimi Konstantopoulos for his 21st goal of the season.
The forward believes the first strike was an important moment in the context of the game, adding: “It got us off to a good start, and we managed to kick on from there.
“I just knew I had to put the defender under pressure. I took the ball into the box and at first I was looking for support from my teammates, but the angle wasn’t good so I took it myself.
“Luckily enough I managed to get it through past the goalkeeper and in at the near post.
“We had some good momentum, some great play, and then we got the second goal which was very important.”
Jerome was praised by his manager after the final whistle – and the former Stoke frontman had positive words to say about Neil, highlighting the Scot’s impact since his appointment in January.
“He’s unbelievable. His attention to detail is almost obsessive. He’s so obsessed with being perfect and not missing anything out,” he revealed.
“When he first came in, nobody knew who he was but after the first meeting everyone was like ‘wow’. He made an impression straight away.
“The way he wants us to play encourages attacking football, and that suits our players. Since he’s come in our record has been exceptional.”