- Ben Chrisene has been ruled out of the trip to Bristol City.
- Norwich may be without a senior left-back starter for the rest of the season.
- Clement could unleash a surprise for Norwich supporters this weekend.
Norwich City will be without left-back Ben Chrisene for their trip to Bristol City in the Championship on Saturday.
Philippe Clement confirmed in his pre-match press conference that the defender is expected to have surgery on a shoulder injury that has been causing him problems for some time.
The 22-year-old full-back is now set to miss the final four matches of the league season, ending the campaign with only 21 appearances in the division.
Norwich’s current left-back situation
On top of Chrisene’s absence, Harry Amass has also been ruled out for the season and returned to Manchester United to continue his rehab.
Lucien Mahovo is due to return to training next week, having been out since January, but it remains to be seen whether or not he will be fit in time to feature again this term.
Jeffrey Schlupp is the closest to making a return to action on the pitch this season because Clement revealed that he will be in the squad against Bristol City.
The former Crystal Palace utility man has been out of action since November, though, so he may not be sharp enough to come in as a starter.
What Clement will likely do against Bristol City
Looking at the current left-back situation, the most likely outcome is that Jack Stacey will start at right-back and Kellen Fisher will start at left-back, as they have in the past two league matches.
However, Stacey has struggled in and out of possession, losing the ball 42 times, in the last two games against Millwall and Ipswich, whilst Fisher is not a natural left-back.
Norwich have lost two of their last three games with that full-back pairing, albeit against difficult opponents in Southampton and Ipswich, and it is not an ideal situation for Clement.
The Belgian boss, though, did say that he needs to “find the balance between winning games and giving opportunities to players” in his presser.
The surprise way Clement can react to Chrisene’s injury
Whilst it still seems most likely that Stacey and Fisher start, Clement’s comment about giving opportunities to players could mean that there may be surprise selections made
With this in mind, the surprise way that the manager can react to Chrisene’s injury is to unleash Vatan Ozcan at left-back against Bristol City.
Norwich are not getting relegated and it is unlikely that they will make the play-offs, so this is the perfect time to provide academy players with an opportunity ahead of next season.
Ozcan, a Turkey U19 international, has played nine matches for the U21s at Norwich this season and is a naturally left-footed left-back.
The 18-year-old defender showed promise in his two first-team appearances for Liam Manning in friendlies last summer, and would provide the team with a natural left-back against Bristol City.
It would be a great chance to see if he is ready to step up to the physicality and intensity of the Championship, giving him an audition to make the first-team squad for the 2026/27 campaign.
Unleashing Ozcan as a surprise inclusion at left-back would allow Clement to play Fisher in his favoured position, whilst also having Stacey as an energetic option off the bench.
