David Hannant: How to deal with Borja Sainz's sillness

However, he is already receiving some complimentary comparisons to a certain other creative talent who wore a seven on his shirt - albeit with a one before it!

On Boxing Day, though, we saw that perhaps he has even more similarities with one Emi Buendia than we originally thought.

For all of Emi's creative genius, attacking flair and footballing mind, the Argentine sure did always love a red card.

In his three seasons at Carrow Road, Buendia saw red four times - in recent memory only Darel Russell with five has been handed more in City colours.

So when the Spaniard picked up a second yellow card against West Brom the Buendia comparisons were inevitably going to step up a gear.

Buendia's unenviable disciplinary record was always something that his vast talent mitigated - it just became accepted that it was part of his game and to reap the benefits of it, you just had to put up with it.

Time will tell whether this will also be the case for Sainz, although the early signs are good.

But what will prove key now is how the aftermath of his Hawthorns misdemeanour is handled by City's top brass - and in particular David Wagner.

At 22, Sainz is still a relatively young player, but this does not mean he shouldn't be aware of the rules and the fact that he let the side down.

Equally, the situation needs to be managed in a measured, sensible way.

For me, it harks back a little to another poor decision from a young player in a City shirt that looked really damaging in the long run.

When Christos Tzolis missed that penalty he should never have taken against Liverpool it was a prime example of a young player making an ill-advised decision which backfired.

After the game, Daniel Farke gave him a deserved public dressing down - but what followed was far from ideal for the Greek's development and for the club overall.

It really felt as if Tzolis was frozen out from that point and never really looked the same exciting player he promised to be on his debut.

This is absolutely the last thing we need to happen with Borja Sainz, whose recent emergence has proven to be one of the bright sparks of City's upturn in form.

Clearly, Sainz needs to learn that cheap red cards are never excusable and Wagner said as much in his post-match comments.

One imagines some home truths will also have been shared behind the scenes to make sure these lessons are learned.

But equally, the situation has to be carefully handled going forward to make sure it doesn't become a big deal that can't really be moved on from.

Personally, if I were in charge I wouldn't be handing out a hefty fine that some have called for - he will already have been fined by the Football Association as is standard with cards.

Instead, I would look for some kind of light-hearted punitive measure which would make the message clear to him while also encouraging a bit of added spirit in the dressing room.

Something like making him sing a song in front of the dressing room or wash the manager's car would do the trick.

Perhaps in the 'real world' this type of disciplinary measure wouldn't sit well, but football doesn't live in the real world.

Then once this punishment has been served, you move on, don't speak of it again and pick up from where he left off.

In recent games, Sainz has been a really bright spark and has rightfully earned the other kind of Buendia comparisons.

He looks creative, clearly knows where the goal is and doesn't look afraid to put work in too - he's started to look the real package.

The attributes he has been bringing are exactly what we've been missing since Buendia's record move to Aston Villa.

Let's hope this situation is dealt with in the right way and isn't allowed to hang over him like that Tzolis penalty debacle.

Nearly 1000 Norwich City supporters made the trip to West Brom on Boxing Day. (Image: Paul Chesterton/Focus Images Ltd)

Is the faith returning?

It's amazing what a few decent results can do, isn't it?

Perhaps it was because most people were still tied up with their Christmas festivities, but the West Brom result was the first defeat in quite some time that I haven't picked up any major anger about.

Sure, if I looked hard enough I'm sure I could find people venting, but to me it didn't seem the result was met with the same venom other defeats have.

Disappointment, of course, frustrations, yes, but I didn't see a huge amount of wrath flooding social media.

Is this an indication that the faith is starting to return?

Certainly, I personally don't feel quite so doom-riddled and convinced the season has come off the rails.

In fact, I even found myself speculatively looking at the betting odds for what would feel like the unlikeliest promotion. For those wondering, the one bookmaker I checked was offering 40/1.

The season is now just over exactly half way through and clearly, it hasn't gone particularly to plan - but there is also a heck of a lot left to play for.

With a bit of form now starting to develop and a fresh bill of health for the likes of Josh Sargent and Grant Hanley incoming, who knows what the next six months could bring? OTBC.