Clarets searching for a double against the Canaries

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Three seasons ago, we did the double over Norwich City and we travel to Carrow Road tomorrow knowing that we have an opportunity to repeat that having beaten them 1-0 at home last October courtesy of a Jay Rodriguez penalty.

Two 2-0 wins in the 2019/20 season were enough to give us our fourth ever double against the Canaries, the others coming in 1934/35, 2000/01 and 2006/07 although it looks as though we might have to attempt double number five with a number of players missing from the squad.

Norwich, having suffered relegation last season along with us and Norwich, have had a strange season. They picked up just one point from their opening three games but then enjoyed a run of six consecutive wins in an unbeaten run of nine games. They reached the top of the league during that run and were being strongly tipped for another immediate return to the Premier League.

That sort of form didn’t continue but they were still fifth despite a 2-1 loss at Luton on Boxing Day but a home draw against Reading to end the year and defeat to Watford, again at home, in the first game of 2023 saw them drop to eleventh and saw manager Dean Smith sacked.

Former Huddersfield boss David Wagner has replaced him and it’s so far so good with two wins out of two, both away from home and both with four goals scored. They won 4-0 at Preston and followed that up with a 4-2 victory at Coventry.

As we go into tomorrow’s game, they sit in eighth place in the table on 42 points and are one of so many teams in the league who will be hoping for a play-off place come the end of the season.

Embed from Getty ImagesBurnley fans were delighted when the transfer window closed with Nathan Tella not having been recalled by his parent club Southampton. He’s enjoying life at Burnley and ahead of the game he said of the team’s winning run: “It’s good, it’s a great feeling. As a team, anyone in sport wants to win and there is a lot of competition in the squad driving each other on every day.

“Day by day, in training and in games, everyone is pushing each other and it’s great to see it backed up with good results. There’s a real togetherness within the squad, there is no pressure on anyone to score all the goals in the team and I think that’s a great attribute to have. No matter who is starting, who is on the bench, where we’re playing, everyone in this team that can contribute is more than capable to pop up with a goal.”

As for the team, we know that Jack Cork is ruled out with a suspension and that all of Taylor Harwood-Bellis, Manuel Benson and Jóhann Berg Guðmundsson are injured, but manager Vincent Kompany warned that illness has hit the squad and it could be a depleted line up for tomorrow’s game.

As for Norwich, Wagner has confirmed they will be without goalkeeper Angus Gunn along with central defender and former Claret Ben Gibson. Gunn has suffered a hip injury and that will see Tim Krul continue in goal. Gibson has this week become a dad with the birth of his son and for that reason he hasn’t been involved in training.

Also out are Jonathan Rowe, Sam Byram and Przemysław Płacheta continue to be unavailable until March. They will, however, welcome Marquinos, the new loan signing from Arsenal to the squad.

For their last game at Coventry, they lined up: Tim Krul, Max Aarons, Andrew Omobamidele, Grant Hanley, Dimitris Giannoulis, Josh Sargent, Kenny McLean, Gabriel Sara, Kieran Dowell, Teemu Pukki, Onel Hernández. Subs: Angus Gunn, Adam Idah, Sam McCallum, Jacob Sørensen, Danel Sinani, Marcelino Núñez, Liam Gibbs.

 

LAST TIME WE WERE THERE

 

Our last visit to Norwich was in April of last year. We were beaten 2-0 and it proved to be a very significant game with Sean Dyche sacked just five days later.

We’d been lifted by the win against Everton during the previous week and there was some real optimism that we could get ourselves out of the bottom three.

We fell behind early with a goal scored by Pierre Lees-Melou. It was unfortunate, given it took two deflections, but what wasn’t unfortunate was the lack of any sign of a comeback.

Embed from Getty ImagesIt was poor, against a desperately poor Norwich side, but we should have got something when Maxwel Cornet missed the easiest of chances.  It wasn’t to be and close to the end, Teemu Pukki added a second. The Dyche era had come to an end with the most inept of displays.

The teams were;

Norwich: Tim Krul, Sam Byram, Grant Hanley, Ben Gibson, Dimitris Giannoulis (Brandon Williams 84), Kenny McLean, Mathias Normann, Kieran Dowell, Pierre Lees-Melou (Lukas Rupp 69), Milot Rashica, Teemu Pukki (Christos Tzolis 89). Subs not used: Angus Gunn, Max Aarons, Christoph Zimmermann, Jacob Sørensen, Tony Springett, Jonathan Rowe.

Burnley: Nick Pope, Matt Lowton, Nathan Collins, James Tarkowski, Charlie Taylor, Aaron Lennon (Dwight McNeil 64), Josh Brownhill, Ashley Westwood, Maxwel Cornet, Wout Weghorst (Matěj Vydra 56), Jay Rodriguez (Ashley Barnes 84). Subs not used: Wayne Hennessey, Connor Roberts, Kevin Long, Bobby Thomas, Dale Stephens, Jack Cork.

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