Happy for Cheikhou Kouyate winning AFCON?
I’m really pleased, really happy for Cheikhou and for Senegal. With the generation that they had they never had a chance to win the competition and finally, they’ve done it. You can see the celebration- it’s a lift for the nation so I’m really proud of them.
Have you spoken to him yet?
No, I didn’t speak to him yet. But I know some of the players and staff had him on the phone. So that’s good.
Proud because of your academy in Senegal?
Yes, very proud. Because that Diambars institute that we have in Senegal is about using football to promote education. And when you have five players who are African Cup winners, that makes us even prouder. So you know, we are really pleased and of course, really happy to have five players in the group.
What does it do for the children in Senegal to have new heroes and how important football is football for them?
I think it’s a massive lift for the morals of the people for having some great examples. Really good role models. When you look at the team, they are wonderful football players, but they’re good human beings, they are a really good example for those young players. We talk about Cheikhou and Sadio Mane because we know them much more with them playing every week. But they are good people. So it is a fantastic achievement from that group of players. I think having positive role models like that for those young players is good.
Will you go back to Senegal?
Yeah. Now it is really difficult, of course. But I go there and I will try to go every time that I can.
Too early to have Cheikhou back in the squad for Norwich?
Yeah, it will be too early. I think he’s been playing a lot of games in really difficult conditions. So I’m going to speak to him and find out how he is but at the moment, I think his mind is on celebrating the trophy. I’m going to be speaking to him to see how he’s going but, of course, I will give him a couple of days and then he will be back obviously to help the team to achieve our targets.
Any other availability news?
Nathan Ferguson has had a step back but outside of that, James McArthur has been training the last couple of days with the team, James Tomkins as well. So we have the majority of the players back now. So this is good news.
Norwich have made a good improvement under Dean Smit but the target is still to go and get three points?
We are going to try to go there and try to play a really good game. You can’t take the three points if you don’t play well enough. We have to be solid, play with belief and confidence and try to be more consistent over 90 minutes with the performances. Then we allow ourselves more chances of winning the games.
Fans have the FA Cup bug, pleased with the draw against Stoke?
I’m pleased because it’s a home tie. Outside of that, it’s not an easy game, especially in the cup. We always believe in every game we play, we do it with concentration, focus, determination and try to win matches. We have a couple of games before the FA Cup game and they are massively important. Our focus is on those games and the Norwich game.
Have you spoken to Dougie Freedman and Steve Parish about transfers in the summer?
It’s not the right time to talk about it. With Dougie and the chairman, we speak every day and always try to put ideas on the table and find the best options to improve the squad. This month is important for us and that is our main focus. We will find the right time to think about the summer.
Would you have taken where you’re currently at with Crystal Palace if you’d been offered it at the start of the season?
Yes, of course. But at the same time, I believe we lost points, we made mistakes and we still need to improve parts of the games that may take a bit longer than I thought but, overall, I am pleased with it. It’s important for us to do better and to win more football matches. We are playing good football. But playing well and creating chances is not enough. We need to be more ruthless in front of goal, defend better in our box, if we do that I’ll be happy.
Looking forward to being on the touchline this time?
Yes, it wasn’t my choice but it will be good to be on the bench. Most importantly is trying to play as well as we did when we played them at home.
What have you made of Dean Smith since his arrival at Norwich?
He brings a new dynamic to the team. The team, the players have responded really well to what he wants. They’ve been doing really well in the last couple of games and we face a team playing with confidence. I believe we have what it takes to make it difficult for them. We have to play with belief and confidence and express ourselves.
What can you take from the last game against them into this one?
I think what was really good in that game is e scored at a really important time, chances we had we scored, we were really clinical. That was something we needed to be more consistent with. We create a lot of chances but don’t score enough. When we played them at home we were more clinical and that’s something we have to take for the rest of the season.
You said the next few games are important but is that because every game is important or are you targeting these games?
I think both. I think every game in the Premier League is important and a win can take you in a different position, but the next games coming up are more important as those teams around us and wins can put us in a good position.
