Pierre Lees-Melou says this weekend’s FA Cup visit to Charlton Athletic is a good opportunity to build some confidence ahead of a busy period of fixtures.
Norwich City haven’t played since December 28, following the postponement of their New Year’s Day visit to Leicester City, and it’s allowed a number of players to recover from respective injuries and illnesses.
Lees-Melou says having a cup fixture this weekend is a fresh challenge for the team.
“It’s perfect for the team because after a tough game against Crystal Palace, we now have this cup game to refresh,” he said exclusively to canaries.co.uk.
“But we must make the most of it. We need to score some goals and be together and play well.
“In our heads, we won’t say it’s easy because it’s a cup game. No, it’s not going to be easy. We will treat this game like a league game, so we are determined to win.
“In football, we know that one win can start something again. For me and for everybody, it’s never finished. We just need a bit of luck and we still have lots of belief in the squad.”
Christmas and New Year in English football is often a busy time, with plenty of games to keep players and staff occupied.
However, Lees-Melou unfortunately contracted COVID-19 over the festive period, resulting in a much quieter end to 2021 for the Frenchman, although he was still struck by the unique nature of the Christmas schedule in England.
“It was different being in England over Christmas because normally in France we are on holiday. Here, we played games and trained a lot. It was my first experience of this.
“I felt the atmosphere was different when you see the fans over Christmas. I really enjoyed the experience.
“Myself and my wife are very happy here, the people are so nice. Everyone we meet always wants to help, they sometimes hear our accents and soon know we are not English. They always help us, so it’s really nice.
“After six months here, we feel very good in England. We have a nice house in a quiet area so we like our lives here.”
Looking ahead, Lees-Melou was honest in his assessment of his form of late and spoke about how he hopes to become a mainstay in the starting XI under Dean Smith.
“I’m a midfielder and I haven’t scored a goal or made an assist yet. For me, it’s not enough. I want to do more on the pitch to be decisive.
“I know it’s my first few months in the Premier League but I want to do more because I’m a professional and I want to improve.
“I want to show more, to do more and play more. It’s up to me to show and prove at the training centre what I can do so I can play more.”