Clement explains star man’s absence after Norwich City beat Birmingham | OneFootball

Philippe Clement says Norwich City left Mo Touré out of their squad for the 2-1 win over Birmingham to avoid risking another injury amid the Championship’s demanding schedule.

Touré had been in impressive form but Clement revealed the club’s data showed signs that the 22-year-old needed a rest after experiencing three games in quick succession for the first time in his career.

“I would love to be in a situation not to do it after the run that he’s been making, but the reality is that Mo is 22 and never played at the level of the Championship before in his career,” Clement said.

“Before in his career, he never played three games in a row with that short turnaround between games. We did that for the first time last week.

“You see also in his blood values, for example, that it rises and it becomes risky business in that moment. He’s a very explosive athlete, that’s also different from players who are more endurance players.

“It was a good decision not to play with him today, and that he is fresh for the next week to come.”

Clement says Norwich are closely monitoring their young players as they adapt to the intensity of Championship football.

“If I would do that now, then we come back in a situation of last season that you have 12 players injured,” he added. “So nobody won that. It’s bad for the group, for the team, for the results.

“When it becomes risky business, you need to make decisions like this. It’s normal where the club is now, with a lot of young players who never played in this intensity.

“Their bodies need to get used to that, but in six months we’re going to make another step again with these guys when their bodies get used to this kind of intensity and running speeds every two days.”