Norwich City and Cardiff City square off at Carrow Road on Saturday afternoon with neither team having anything to play for on the final day of the Championship.
However, with former Arsenal teammates Jack Wilshere and Aaron Ramsey going head to head, there will be plenty of intrigue about the fixture between the 14th and 24th-placed teams in the table.
Match preview
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Borja Sainz may be one of the Championship’s top goalscorers with 17 strikes to his name, but Norwich head into this match having put together a below-average campaign.
That has largely come under Johannes Hoff Thorup who has since been removed from his position in the dugout, a consequence of the Canaries failing to achieve a playoff place.
Jack Wilshere has been promoted to interim boss for the final two fixtures, the former Arsenal and England midfielder earning a respectable goalless draw at Middlesbrough in his first encounter.
As a result, Norwich can still finish in 12th place in the standings, yet there is still the potential of ending 2024-25 in 17th position, something that would not be well perceived.
Nevertheless, with there already being reports of Wilshere being handed the reins on a permanent basis, he will want to showcase his credentials with three points against a familiar face.
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At a time when Norwich have won just two of their last 15 matches in the Championship, Cardiff have just two victories from 16 games in the same competition.
Aaron Ramsey has brought about some respectability with draws versus Oxford United and West Bromwich Albion, yet the Bluebirds head into this contest having already been relegated to League One.
Too many draws has been the issue. Cardiff have suffered fewer defeats than six of the teams above them, yet 17 draws have left them five points adrift of safety with one match remaining.
Remarkably, Cardiff have won just two of their 22 away fixtures in this season’s second tier, albeit aided by sharing the spoils on 11 occasions.
Team News
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With Wilshere eager to win his first game as a manager, the Norwich XI for this fixture may largely resemble the one that started the goalless draw at Middlesbrough.
Liam Gibbs is pushing for an opportunity in the engine room, while Oscar Schwartau may return on the right flank ahead of Jack Stacey.
While Ramsey may feel a responsibility to start looking towards next season, the Welshman also has the change to end his temporary reign unbeaten.
With that in mind, the Cardiff starting lineup could stay the same, even with Rubin Colwill and Ollie Tanner pushing for a return.
Joe Ralls made his return from a six-week layoff last time out, but the midfielder may miss out on a start.
Norwich City possible starting lineup:
Gunn; McConville, Duffy, Doyle, McLean; Wright, Gibbs; Schwartau, Nunez, Sainz; Sargent
Cardiff City possible starting lineup:
Horvath; Ng, Fish, Chambers, O’Dowda; Rinomhota, Turnbull; Tanner, Robertson, Willock; Salech
We say: Norwich City 2-1 Cardiff City
With both teams having earned impressive results against higher-placed opposition last time out, there will be belief that they can end the campaign on a positive note. However, we feel that Norwich, in front of their own fans, will do enough to earn the win.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
