Will Norwich City be better suited for the Premier League next season after another year in the Championship?
Norwich’s place in the Premier League next season is all but wrapped up. The recent 7-0 dismantling of Huddersfield Town moved the Canaries 17 points clear of third-place Brentford and it’s just a matter of time before Daniel Farke’s men can call themselves a Premier League side once again.
Norwich have been one of the most exciting teams in the league this season and the ruthless, no-holds-barred victory over Huddersfield is evidence of that and why they continuously fancied to win in the English Championship odds. That win was their 26th victory of the season, and only Brentford have scored more goals (68) than the Canaries (64).
Of course, Farke will want to ensure that his side do not follow suit from the last time they were in the top flight. Last season, Norwich picked up just 21 points as they finished rock bottom of the Premier League table with just five wins to their name and some 14 points adrift from safety.
What they will want to do is really establish themselves as a Premier League outfit and put an end to the yo-yoing between England’s top divisions. But, will they be able to do that come next season? Well, there is certainly hope as promotion will give them a great chance of keeping their best players.
The likes of Todd Cantwell, Emiliano Buendia and Max Aarons have continuously been linked with a move away from Carrow Road. However, another crack at the Premier League with the Canaries could see them stay for another season or two and you could argue that they have all matured into more well-rounded players over the last 12 months and now they are that little bit older, they could fare better in the challenging Premier League.
Teemu Pukki is another player who will want to redeem himself after the 2019/20 season. Norwich heavily rely on the 31-year-old’s goals. He fired them into the Premier League with 29 strikes in 43 games back in 2018/19 and it looks like he has done it again this year with 25 goals in 36 games (correct at the time of writing).
However, his maiden year in the Premier League didn’t go to plan. He scored just 11 times in 36 games for Norwich and that was part of their downfall, as they lost a whopping 27 times across the course of the season. With Buendia starting to chip in with more goals, he currently has 12 in 32 games, there could be less weight on the shoulders of Pukki and that could help him relax a touch more next season.
Then, of course, there is Farke. The man that Norwich have decided to stick with despite suffering relegation. The board’s decision has paid dividends and he will be taking the plaudits when the Canaries book their place back in the Premier League.
The fairly inexperienced German, who joined Norwich from Borussia Dortmund II in May 2017, has had a taste of Premier League football now and he will be more equipped for the task at hand next season.
It definitely seems that Norwich are in a better position now as they close in on the Premier League once again, and with their current manager and crop of players, including the addition of a few summer signings, they will be confident that they will be able to stay up.
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