Norwich City host Leeds United tomorrow lunchtime in what is set to be a pulsating affair in the Championship play-off semi-final first leg.
The Canaries suffered a blow on the final day of the regular season when they recorded a shock 1-0 defeat at the hands of Birmingham City. Despite the victory, the Blues were still relegated, although it did have repercussions on their opponents. With West Bromwich Albion winning at Preston North End, it was a result which saw David Wagner’s team slip to sixth.
Leeds also head into the tie on the back of a loss. Fourth-placed Southampton will now believe they will carry the momentum into the play-offs having emerged from Elland Road with three points. It also means that manager Daniel Farke has to navigate a tricky path against his former club.
The Whites will be heavy favourites to progress over the two legs. They pushed both Leicester City and Ipswich Town all the way in the race for automatic promotion, even briefly topping the table in March. However, one win from their last six fixtures condemned them to a play-off berth.
Norwich find themselves in the top six after recovering from a dreadful dip of form in October. There were rumours that Wagner could’ve found himself cast aside as his side failed to win in six, but they have been steady since. Leeds have won both meetings between the pair this season by the odd goal, and this could be a tight affair once again.
Here’s how two of The Real EFL’s writing team see the game panning out…
Jamie Ward
“Leeds put all their efforts into securing an automatic promotion place, which could benefit Norwich. Recent form hasn’t been great for either side though, making this tough to predict.
“Daniel Farke has an abundance of talent at his disposal and knows that failing to gain a place in the Premier League could see a fire sale at Elland Road. Arguably, there is more riding on this for the Whites than their opponents.
“Expect the visitors to come out all guns blazing and look for an early goal to settle the nerves. The Canaries may be happy to sit back and play on the counter-attack, but that would play into Leeds’ hands.
“Many are writing off Norwich here, including myself.”
Norwich City 0-2 Leeds United
Ivan Newsome
“Neither side finished the season in the best of form and as a result this could be quite a hard game to predict.
“On paper, Leeds should have the quality to surpass their opposition over two legs but that is far easier said than done and the Canaries will be looking to upset the applecart.
“However, Norwich haven’t looked at all convincing recently and only have two wins from their last seven. They’ve not exactly been firing on all cylinders and will have to be at their best if they want a trip to Wembley.
“Leeds cannot throw promotion away having been in automatic contention all season. I do think they’ll stamp their authority in this one and take a lead back to Elland Road, but it may be a bit closer than some fans think.”
Norwich City 1-2 Leeds United
