Football League World
·22 novembre 2024
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·22 novembre 2024
David Prutton has backed West Brom to beat Norwich City at The Hawthorns on Saturday.
David Prutton has predicted more misery for Norwich City when they travel to The Hawthorns to take on West Brom this weekend.
Carlos Corberan’s men ended an eight-game run without a win, which remarkably included six consecutive draws, by beating Hull City prior to the international break, to secure their place in the play-off places as it stands.
Meanwhile, the Canaries are enduring a difficult patch under new boss Johannes Hoff Thorup, as they are without a win in six, with three defeats on the bounce.
So, Norwich are heading to the West Midlands low on confidence, and Sky Sports pundit Prutton is expecting another loss for Thorup’s side, as he went for a narrow home success when sharing his prediction on the Essential EFL podcast.
“It’s three defeats on the spin for Norwich, and I’m going to make it four. West Brom 2-1 Norwich.”
That would continue a trend under Corberan, as Albion have won both games against the Yellows since the Spaniard was appointed.
But, the Baggies haven’t dominated this fixture generally over the years, and Norwich did take the points the last time the sides met back in January.
Even though West Brom are doing well in the Championship, they aren’t exactly firing at The Hawthorns.
Incredibly, there have only been three goals in seven games at West Brom’s stadium, with Corberan’s side scoring two of them.
Such a low tally meant they broke an unwanted record, as it’s the lowest number of goals scored by a home team after seven games in over 50 years.
Perhaps the only saving grace for Albion is that they remain hard to beat, and despite the lack of action, Middlesbrough are the only side to score, and win, at The Hawthorns, meaning they’ve kept six clean sheets in seven.
That gives an indication as to just how hard Albion are to score against, and whilst they must improve in the final third, they have been a very resolute and well organised outfit since Corberan took over.
It’s no coincidence that Norwich’s poor run has come in recent games, as they have had to do without two key players.
Josh Sargent has been excellent this season, but a groin problem means he has missed the past three games, and his absence has been felt. Worryingly for Norwich, they are having to do without the USA international over the next eight weeks, so Thorup will have to find solutions.
Elsewhere, another influential figure to miss the past three games is Kenny McLean, and the Scottish international will also be watching on when his teammates face West Brom.
The midfielder was sent off against Middlesbrough, which brought a three-game ban, but he was then found guilty of using abusive language towards the official, which saw him hit with another one-match suspension.
So, this will be the final game of McLean’s ban, but he will be back for the home fixture against Plymouth Argyle in the week.