Currently bottom of the Premier League standings, Norwich City look destined to fall back into England’s second tier, as they sit six points adrift at the foot of the table and seven behind Aston Villa who are out of the relegation zone in 17th place.
Daniel Farke’s men will have to produce a minor miracle in order to pull themselves to safety, but with 13 games remaining in their campaign, is it possible?
How they got into this situation
Things looked bright for the Canaries at the start of the season, after two back-to-back home victories against Newcastle United and reigning champions Manchester City respectively.
However, their early promising form soon tailed off and it was not until the new year before Norwich were able to find their next victory at Carrow Road when they beat fellow strugglers Bournemouth courtesy of a Teemu Pukki penalty in mid-January.
Their away form has been even more abysmal, with their only away win of the season coming in a 2-0 victory at Goodison Park against a poor Everton side in Matchday 13.
There have been credible draws at home to both Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur, as well as a hard-earned point away to high-flying Leicester. Unfortunately for the Norwich faithful, however, there have also been some very poor results, including a 5-1 loss at home to fellow relegation candidates Aston Villa.
Lack of firepower up top
Both his attackers and defenders have given Daniel Farke constant headaches throughout the season, and the German boss has had to rely on the goal-scoring prowess of star striker Teemu Pukki for much of the season.
The Finnish striker has notched 11 goals this season, a very respectable tally for a man who was tipped by many to fail in the highest level of English football. However, despite his decent return, Pukki has only managed to score twice in his last seven appearances in the league, both of which have come from the penalty spot.
Todd Cantwell has supplied another six goals for the Canaries, but their third-highest goalscorer for the season is youngster Adam Idah, who conjured up all of his three goals in an FA Cup win over Championship side Preston North End.
There has been a severe lack of goals from Norwich’s midfield, and when you take away the scoring influence of Todd Cantwell within the middle of the park, it is bleak viewing for supporters.
Mario Vrancic, Alexander Tettey, and Kenny McLean are the only other goal-scoring midfielders at the club, albeit they have only managed to grab one goal each throughout the season.
Defensive frailties
Despite the fact that full-backs Max Aarons and Jamal Lewis have had many admirers in the transfer window, they have both been part of the joint worse defence in the Premier League, conceding 47 goals.
The main issues seem to lie at centre-back, where Norwich have the likes of Ben Godfrey, Timm Klose, Christoph Zimmermann and Grant Hanley at their disposal.
Godfrey has been shaky at times, but he’s still young and has shown the potential to go on and become a Premier League regular starter in years to come. The same cannot be said for the other three, however.
Both Klose and Hanley have had top-level experience in the past, but they both look incapable of reaching the standards needed from a Premier League centre-half.
Zimmermann was decent during his first two years in England, but similar to his other two counterparts, he has struggled against many of the strikers he has come against this season.
Tim Krul in goal has always had a reliable pair of hands, however time may look to be catching up with the Dutchman, as he has only managed to keep four clean sheets throughout 2019/20.
Can they survive?
With only thirteen games remaining, time is running out for Daniel Farke. His side are bottom with 18 points, and will realistically need to win at least 4 or 5 games in the business part of the season to survive the drop.
Luckily for the Canaries, there is still hope. Other sides around them have struggled for form and if the basement boys manage to pull together a series of good results, a miraculous escape could be on the cards.
Farke will be hoping for Pukki to rediscover his fine form from earlier on in the season, but the gaffer will also be needing inspired performances for the rest of his squad as well.
Emiliano Buendia can be dangerous from set-pieces, but he will need to be more prolific in front of goal in order to help his side avoid relegation. The Argentine midfielder has produced seven assists in the league this season (only Kevin De Bruyne and Trent Alexander-Arnold has more), but he is yet to find the net himself.
Both Buendia and fellow wide man Todd Cantwell may well have pivotal roles to play in the relegation run-in, as will full-back Sam Byram, who has become a regular starter in the side.
The former West Ham United defender has performed well defensively, producing the most tackles and aerial duels won in the Norwich side.
Tricky ties against Liverpool, Manchester City, and Chelsea remain for Farke’s men, although they do host Brighton, West Ham, and Burnley in three of their final six games, which could prove vital come the 17th May.
However, to put themselves in with a serious chance of staying up, they will need to grind out results in their next few fixtures, and the visit of Southampton on the 14th March may well be crucial.
Although the odds are well and truly stacked against them, with a few inspired performances combined with a bit of luck, Norwich could well keep their Premier League status for another year. To achieve that however, their resurgence may need to begin in their next fixture, when they take on Jurgen Klopp’s unbeaten Liverpool side at Carrow Road. Piece of cake.
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