In the third round of fixtures of the new Championship campaign, Sheffield United will travel to Carrow Road on Saturday to take on Norwich City.
Both teams surrendered leads to play out 2-2 draws last weekend after contrasting results in their season-openers.
Match preview
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Norwich City return to Carrow Road on Saturday in search of their first victory of the Championship season at the third time of asking, having made a slow start under new management.
After a sixth-placed finish and a subsequent 4-0 aggregate defeat to Leeds United in the playoff semi-finals last time around, the Canaries hierarchy dismissed David Wagner and turned to Johannes Hoff Thorup to lead them into the new campaign, with his tenure starting with a trip to newly-promoted Oxford United in the curtain-raiser.
They were unable to get off the mark in that trip, succumbing to a 2-0 defeat as Mark Harris and Cameron Brannagan netted goals for the hosts either side of the interval, before heading into a meeting with Blackburn Rovers on the back of a 4-3 EFL Cup victory over third-tier Stevenage.
After falling behind in the first half of that contest, the Norfolk outfit turned the game on its head after the hour mark as Josh Sargent netted a leveller and Borja Sainz put them ahead, but Thorup's men eventually had to settle for a point as Yuki Ohashi pegged them back with an 87th-minute equaliser.
Now heading into their third consecutive fixture at Carrow Road with cause for optimism under their new boss but the need to improve at the back, having already conceded seven goals in their three competitive outings this term, Norwich City will bid to kickstart their Championship campaign with a first victory on Saturday.
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Their visitors will also bid to get back to winning ways in Norfolk on Saturday, having squandered what would have extended a perfect start to the 2024-25 campaign last weekend.
Following a dismal campaign resulting in relegation from the Premier League in 20th spot last time around, having only earned 16 points, Sheffield United returned to the Championship with the aim of bouncing back to the top flight under the management of Chris Wilder, having initially been handed a two-point deduction.
That was quickly wiped out in their curtain-raiser, as the Blades visited Preston North End and triumphed in a 2-0 victory thanks to goals from Oliver Arblaster and Gustavo Hamer, before they met Wrexham in the EFL Cup first round and progressed with a 4-2 win as Auston Trusty, Louie Marsh and Anis Slimane got on the scoresheet alongside a Lewis Brunt own goal.
Then aiming to extend their winning run to start the campaign and move onto four points in England's second tier, the Blades most recently hosted Queens Park Rangers last Saturday and enjoyed a dream start, leading 2-0 through Hamer and Kieffer Moore inside 15 minutes, but they would eventually have to settle for a point as Jimmy Dunne pulled one back for the visitors and Lyndon Dykes levelled the scores two minutes from time, despite Jack Colback being sent off.
Left disappointed by that result after the dominant start, Sheffield United will now set to bounce back on Saturday and move onto five points with another victory on the road in their bid to overcome the deduction and quickly join the Championship's frontrunners.
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Team News
![Jack Robinson of Sheffield United during the Sky Bet Championship match Preston North End vs Sheffield United at Deepdale, Preston, United Kingdom, August 9, 2024 [on August 11, 2024]](https://sm.imgix.net/24/32/jack-robinson.jpg?w=640&h=480&auto=compress,format&fit=clip "Jack Robinson of Sheffield United during the Sky Bet Championship match Preston North End vs Sheffield United at Deepdale, Preston, United Kingdom, August 9, 2024 [on August 11, 2024]")
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Norwich City will remain without attacker Ashley Barnes heading into Saturday's contest due to a long-term injury, while winger Jon Rowe will not feature as he nears a departure from the club.
Josh Sargent will continue to lead the line, having opened his account for the season last weekend after netting 16 goals in just 26 Championship appearances last time around, while Borja Sainz is a danger man on the left wing having scored in back-to-back games.
Onel Hernandez will challenge youngster Gabriel Forsyth to line up on the other flank, while Kenny McLean and Marcelino Nunez are bound to continue their partnership at the base of the midfield in Johannes Hoff Thorup's 4-2-3-1 setup.
Chris Wilder should avoid making many changes to his Sheffield United starting XI despite last weekend's disappointing draw, although Michael Cooper should earn a debut between the sticks having started with a substitute appearance last weekend following his arrival from Plymouth Argyle.
Sam McCallum and Rhys Norrington-Davies have returned to contention, leaving Femi Seriki and Jamie Shackleton as the Blades' only enforced absentees, but summer signings Alfie Gilchrist and Harrison Burrows are bound to again join Anel Ahmedhodzic and captain Jack Robinson in an unaltered back four, while Oliver Arblaster and Vinicius Souza will continue their midfield partnership.
After making his debut in a brief substitute appearance last Saturday, Jesurun Rak-Sakyi may earn a first start on the right wing at Carrow Road, likely joining key men Callum O'Hare and Gustavo Hamer in support of lone striker Kieffer Moore, who opened his account for the Blades against Queens Park Rangers.
Norwich City possible starting lineup:
Gunn; Stacey, Duffy, Doyle, Chrisene; McLean, Nunez; Hernandez, Forson, Sainz; Sargent
Sheffield United possible starting lineup:
Cooper; Gilchrist, Ahmedhodzic, Robinson, Burrows; Souza, Arblaster; Rak-Sakyi, O'Hare, Hamer; Moore
We say: Norwich City 1-2 Sheffield United
Left disappointed by last weekend's 2-2 home draw, Sheffield United will be keen to bounce back to winning ways on Saturday, and they have the quality to come through a tough test at Carrow Road with all three points.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Sam Varley
