How ex-Norwich City star Onel Hernandez reacted when asked if he’d play for Ipswich Town | OneFootball

The ex-Canaries winger has become viral on TikTok

Norwich City will be hoping that, over the course of the upcoming season, they can continue the run of momentum which has swept through Carrow Road following the appointment of former AS Monaco and Rangers head coach, Philippe Clement, last November.

The Belgian immediately became one of the most experienced head coaches at Championship level once he took over from Liam Manning, who was initially appointed by the Canaries just 13 months ago.

Indeed, after swiftly being able to turn the tide and get points on the board, the Norfolk outfit were, alongside Southampton, one of the most in-form sides in the second half of 2025/26, and they were subsequently able to end the season with a hugely admirable ninth-place finish when taking plenty of circumstances.

As such, with the Championship's promotion scene taking further twists heading into the new season, many are expecting Norwich to become a force to be reckoned with and have a chance at ending their current exile from the Premier League, which has now lasted four years.

It will also sting more at present knowing that bitter East Anglian rivals, Ipswich Town, are back in the top-flight for the second time in three years, and that they are now managed by a former City midfielder, Gary O'Neil, following Kieran McKenna's recent surprise exit from Portman Road.

However, even though the Old Farm derby will not be renewed for the new season, that will not stop both sets of supporters from engaging in online rivalry, with former Norwich winger, Onel Hernandez, also getting involved once more.

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The 15-time Cuban international is currently a free agent after seeing his most recent spell with Port Vale - who were relegated to League Two despite making the FA Cup quarter-finals - after just 11 appearances in all competitions.

It is abundantly clear that Hernandez still has a large place in his heart for Norwich, who he signed for from Eintracht Braunschweig in 2018, before going on to make 210 appearances and register 41 goal contributions, as well as two promotions to the Premier League ahead of his exit in 2025.

Yet, just weeks after departing, the 33-year-old sparked major discourse by taking aim at his former teammate, Marcelino Nunez, who made the controversial £7.5m switch from Norfolk to Suffolk last August, stating that he would "break" the Chilean, despite eventually failing to get on the pitch for Charlton Athletic at Portman Road less than two months later in a 3-0 win for the Addicks.

Hernandez can now be found at @CanaryReplies on TikTok, and when met with a comment: "Go play for Ipswich Onel, we could do with a spare winger," he responded: "Are you mad!" with dramatic sound effects and a multitude of facial expressions to further sum up his verdict of the tongue-in-cheek remark.

Norwich City will hope to swap places with Ipswich Town in the pyramid next summer

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It is very early days in terms of pre-season, but Norwich have only added to the optimism felt by supporters by recently sealing the signing of Andre Brooks from Championship rivals, Sheffield United.

Meanwhile, Ipswich, naturally, have been linked with a whole host of players in recent days as O'Neil looks to reshape his newly-inherited squad into one which can compete for survival in the Premier League after being relegated with a whimper in 2024/25.

That said, until Town's back-to-back promotion success under McKenna, it was very much Norwich who ruled the roost in this part of the country for some time. Naturally though, they were clearly devastated when they had lost a 16-year unbeaten streak in the derby last October, only to be defeated again at Carrow Road back in April in controversial circumstances, which, to the surprise of very few, involved Nunez despite the fact he was only on the pitch for 23 minutes.

With a top eight finish now securing a play-off spot, there is renewed hope that Norwich could achieve promotion and swap places with Ipswich, although for some, they would also relish the prospect of a top-flight clash between the two for the first time since March 1995.