Norwich City suffer cruel blow ahead of West Brom - 4 players affected | OneFootball

Norwich City have suffered a fresh injury blow ahead of the next campaign after Ali Ahmed limped off injured in pre-season

Norwich City head into the 2025/26 Championship season full of confidence under the guidance of Philippe Clement, but will seemingly have to make do without some of their first-team stars to begin with.

Norwich enjoyed an excellent second half of the campaign under the watch of former Rangers and Monaco boss Clement, with the Belgian head coach guiding the Canaries away from the relegation zone and to within touching distance of the play-offs.

As preparations for next season are well underway at Carrow Road, Norwich supporters will be hoping to continue on a similar trajectory moving forward, and having made the additions of Andre Brooks from Sheffield United for £8 million, Bruno Alves on loan from Cruzeiro, and Sam Field from Queens Park Rangers for a potential £2.8 million, they appear to stand in good stead.

However, as Clement decides on what his starting XI on the opening day at home to West Bromwich Albion will look like, he must first contend with a fresh injury blow.

Norwich City face a fresh injury blow to Ali Ahmed as the Canaries' treatment room piles up

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As Norwich bowed out their pre-season with a 2-1 home defeat to Osasuna, one key talking point from the game supersedes the result.

Canadian winger Ali Ahmed, who joined the club in January 2026 from Vancouver Whitecaps for around £1.4 million, was taken off around the 70th minute in their home defeat to Osasuna, in what could be a huge blow for the Canaries.

Ahmed, 25, scored four and grabbed three assists in 19 Championship games in the second half of last season following his arrival, and nailed down a place on the left flank under Clement.

The winger recently represented his nation at the World Cup in North America, where he made four appearances under Jesse Marsch as Canada were knocked out in the Round of 16 to Morocco.

Now, Ahmed could be set to face a spell on the sidelines, joining each of Jovon Makama, Kellen Fisher, and Lucien Mahovo in the treatment room, though no timeline has been put on the extent of the injury as yet, as Clement has commented on the situation following the defeat to Osasuna.

Philippe Clement shares an update on Ali Ahmed after Norwich City's clash against Osasuna

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Following the recent blow to Ahmed, Norwich head coach Clement has provided an update on the Canadian, saying: "He felt something in his knee. It's never good, of course, and everybody's a little bit devastated after that.

"You saw it on the pitch also, and that's normal because it comes falling out of the sky as a knock on all the team in that moment.

"But we need to accept it and see now the next couple of days what's the case, but it doesn't look good.

"It's hard because it's a guy that everybody loves because of his energy and positivity. So we will need to be there also to support him, because I think he's going to be out for a while.

Now, Clement looks to be without each of Ahmed, Makama, Fisher, and Mahovo for their opening day clash with the Baggies, as the Belgian head coach must call upon the rest of his squad to step up in their absence.

Each of Matej Jurasek, Forson Amankwah, Andre Brooks, Ante Crnac, and Papa Diallo can all operate out wide, although the latter two are also yet to feature in pre-season due to injuries, as Clement will have a conundrum when choosing who starts in the wide areas on the opening day.

How have Norwich City supporters reacted to Ali Ahmed's injury?

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After Ahmed's unfortunate injury, Norwich supporters have taken to social media to react, with the majority sending their support.

With injuries plaguing their wide areas previously, this fresh injury to Ahmed only emphasises Norwich's need to bring in another option on the left flank.

Ahmed struggled to make an impact at the World Cup as his nation was knocked out at their home tournament; now, he must watch his club side from the sidelines, in a damning turn of events.

Injury woes are nothing new for Norwich, having massively struggled with them last year too, and now that trend appears to have continued, with Ahmed the latest victim.