With a goal and assist to his name, new signing Kieran Dowell was one of the standout performers in Norwich City’s 3-0 win over SC Verl in pre-season on Monday.
Head coach Daniel Farke discussed his performance after the match, highlighting his willingness to put the team first as one of his biggest strengths.
“Kieran worked a lot for the team and was good against the ball. He’s an offensive player thinking more about the team than himself. When you keep the game simple you earn the benefit and he did with a fantastic assist and finish.
“That’s what we want from offensive players - that they are effective - so with Kieran I was pleased.”
Despite the resounding nature of a 3-0 scoreline, Farke expected more from the performance against Verl.
“The start in general is good - two wins from two games - that’s good for the confidence and I’m particularly happy with the two clean sheets,” he said. “It’s important to have this attitude during pre-season, but not that easy when you have many changes during a game.
“To be always solid against good sides who are highly motivated, it’s good. Two wins and nine goals is good. We created many chances so positives to take.
“Performance-wise, I wasn’t really happy today. We had a good performance against MK Dons but today we weren’t solid enough; I wasn’t happy with the first touch or passing quality. The mental attitude and our pressing was sometimes sloppy.
“Of course, I’m happy with the result and parts of our game, but in general, I’m not over the moon with the performance.
“It was a difficult test today because their pressing was good and aggressive, but several times we chose the wrong option in the build up. They were pretty brave. We were the better side and deserved to win the game, but we can realise that we have to work on several topics.
“It’s not like we’re ready to go into the season right now, so I’m happy that we have at least a bit of time to work, but that’s normal during pre-season.”
Next up - Dynamo Dresden on Wednesday for City’s third and penultimate pre-season fixture.
“All games are challenging and demanding,” Farke said. “From game to game, the task will grow a bit. Our next opponent, Dynamo Dresden, are a big name in Germany, but because they’ve been relegated to the third tier, we are probably the favourites.
“It will be a big task for us because they’re further ahead in their pre-season. We need challenging tasks so it’s an important game for us.”