EPL: Norwich face Man City acid test

Norwich City vs. Man City
Venue: Carrow Road
Kick off: 5:30PM

When Norwich City looked at the fixture list for the opening month or so of the Premier League season, the visit of two top-six sides to Carrow Road would have stood out as an encapsulation of the step up required following their promotion last season.
The impressively smooth win they achieved over Newcastle United would have been earmarked as a potential three points, but the test they gave Chelsea bodes promisingly for a match against the champions.
While Norwich are second from bottom, Manchester City sit second, chasing Liverpudlian smoke thanks to their would-be nemeses’ immaculate start to the season.
Even if this game proves a mismatch, it should be entertaining.
Although the Canaries have lost three of their four matches on their return to the Premier League, their performances at Carrow Road are an early source of encouragement.
Having eased past Newcastle United 3-1 in that opening home match, they ran Chelsea close on their way to a 3-2 defeat against the Europa League holders.
Todd Cantwell and Teemu Pukki provided the equalisers as they held the visitors 2-2 at the interval, only for Tammy Abraham to score a second-half winner.
That defeat to Chelsea was Norwich’s first home league defeat of the calendar year, and they have scored at least two goals in all but one of their matches on that run.
On his first season in the Premier League, Pukki has proven he can continue the form that made him last season’s Championship top-scorer.
The Finland dangerman scored a hat-trick to demolish Newcastle and has found the net in three of his side’s first four matches, although he was unable to prevent them slipping to a 2-0 defeat at West Ham United last time out.
His appearance at the London Stadium was Pukki’s 50th in a Norwich shirt, during which time he has scored 35 goals.
However, the familiar prospect of City and Liverpool making their moves at different times of the weekend returns this evening, with the Reds welcoming Newcastle United in the early kick off.
City start the day two points behind their main rivals, knowing that any unexpected slip-up at Anfield would give them the opportunity to reach the top of the table once again.
They have been on menacing away form so far, thrashing West Ham United 5-0 on the opening day before cruising to a 3-1 win at Bournemouth.
A 2-1 defeat at Newcastle United at the end of January remains the only time they have dropped points on their travels this year, although they were held by Tottenham in their first game of the season at the Etihad Stadium.
That 2-2 draw was followed up with a confident 4-0 win over Brighton & Hove Albion, including a goal in either half for Sergio Aguero.
There was little let-up in the performances of City’s myriad stars during their enforced hiatus from domestic action as they shone on international duty.
Striker Raheem Sterling scored one and set up three goals as England stormed to a 5-1 lead against Kosovo before conceding two second-half goals in a surprisingly close-run victory.
Bernardo Silva set up two goals as Portugal beat Lithuania 5-1 and Oleksandr Zinchenko scored his second goal in as many games for Ukraine in a 2-2 with Nigeria in a friendly match in Dnipro.
Kevin De Bruyne was also sensational in Belgium’s midfield, playing a part in all of their goals as they breezed past Scotland 4-0.

Norwich possible XI: Krul, Aarons, Godfrey, Hanley, Lewis, Amadou, Leitner, Buendia, Stiepermann, Cantwell, Pukki.
Man City possible XI: Ederson, Walker, Otamendi, Fernandinho, Zinchenko, De Bruyne, Rodri, David Silva, Bernardo Silva, Aguero, Sterling.