- Ipswich Town come to Carrow Road on Saturday looking for their first win since 2006.
- Norwich welcome back key star for clash with their local rivals this weekend.
- Clement is looking to win in his first East Anglian derby in charge of Norwich.
Ipswich Town have not beaten Norwich City at Carrow Road since a 2-1 defeat in February 2006, over 20 years ago.
The Tractor Boys are fighting to secure automatic promotion back to the Premier League, whilst Philippe Clement’s side are chasing a faint hope of a play-off finish.
How they fared in their last games
Norwich ran out 2-1 winners against Millwall at The Den on Easter Monday, in a game that was described by Clement as the team’s best performance under the Belgian.
Goals from Pelle Mattsson and Oscar Schwartau secured a narrow win for the Canaries in London, which opened the door for Ipswich to move back up to second.
The Tractor Boys walked through that door by beating a struggling Birmingham City side 2-1 at Portman Road, with goals from Ben Johnson and Kasey McAteer.
Both teams head into this match off the back of wins and should be full of confidence that they can come away with all of the bragging rights.
The latest East Anglian team news
Clement confirmed that Ruairi McConville and Kellen Fisher both trained all week and are available for selection against Ipswich.
McConville missed the two Easter games with a knee injury sustained on international duty, whilst Fisher came off with a muscular issue against Millwall.
On Ipswich’s side, Kieran McKenna revealed that winger Wes Burns will not be available to face the Canaries.
Meanwhile, Ivan Azon and Azor Matusiwa will both be late decisions after picking up knocks, so it remains to be seen whether or not they will be in the squad at Carrow Road.
What my head is telling me…
My heart is telling me that Norwich will avenge their 3-1 defeat at Portman Road under Liam Manning, with many of the starting line-up from that game likely to start again this weekend.
There will be a hunger to right the wrongs from the Suffolk clash, whilst there will be the added edge of Marcelino Nunez’s first return to Norfolk since his controversial move to Ipswich.
The emotional element could give the Canaries a bit of an edge over the Tractor Boys, who finally ended their 14-year wait for a win over their rivals in September and may not be as hungry this time around.
Clement has been big on keeping standards high during his time at Carrow Road, so it is hard to envisage a game where his side fails to deliver on energy and passion in a derby.
What my head is telling me…
For once, my head and my heart are telling me the same thing. Norwich City are going to beat Ipswich Town this weekend.
The feel-good factor around Carrow Road at the moment is reaching Daniel Farke levels, which is why my heart tells me that it will be a home win, but the facts also back up that feeling.
Since January 1st, when Clement was able to right the wrongs of last summer’s transfer business, no team in the league has won more points than Norwich (37).
In that period, Ipswich have averaged 2.07 points per game. Norwich, meanwhile, have averaged 2.18 points per game, making them the form team in this weekend’s clash.
The Canaries also welcomed Mohamed Toure back from injury over the Easter games, which is a huge boost. He has scored four goals and provided three assists in six Championship games for Norwich.
My prediction
Because my heart and head are both saying the same thing, I have to predict a Norwich win in the East Anglian derby this weekend.
This may well end up on the popular X account ‘Norwich images that precede unfortunate events’, but it feels right in the moment.
That is why I am predicting a 3-1 win for Norwich against Ipswich. I will even go as far as to say that Toure will score in his first derby appearance for the Canaries.
Let’s hope my heart and head are right…
