EFL Championship: Gameweek 1
Stadium: Carrow Road
5th August 2023
Norwich City will welcome Hull City at Carrow Road in Gameweek 1 of the English Championship. The teams finished 13th and 15th place in the table last year. Who will come out on top after 90 minutes?
Receive Your Welcome Bonus!Norwich City form
Last season, Norwich was the pre-season favourites for an immediate return to the Premier League. However, they couldn't sustain the momentum and fell short of the top six, finishing seven points adrift.
Despite some positives following David Wagner's arrival in January, it wasn't enough to secure a playoff spot. This summer, the club has seen some influential figures, including club legend Teemu Pukki, depart. But this has also provided an opportunity for a fresh start, preparing them for a tougher promotion race.
Bringing in players like Jack Stacey, Shane Duffy, and Ashley Barnes adds potential difference-makers at both ends of the pitch. However, the real excitement among Norwich fans comes from the recent signing of winger Christian Fassnacht.
The club's pre-season campaign has further fueled optimism, with four wins and three draws in matches against strong opponents like AZ Alkmaar, Toulouse, and Olympiacos.
Norwich City Predicted Lineup
Gunn; Stacey, Duffy, Gibson, Giannoulis; McLean, Sara; Fassnacht, Sargent, Hernandez; Barnes
Hull City Form
Despite being clubs of different standings, Hull finds themselves in a similar situation as their manager, Liam Rosenior, is also preparing for his first full season with the team. In the 2022-23 season, Hull achieved a respectable 15th-placed finish, comfortably staying 14 points clear of the relegation zone. However, the club's owners have ambitions of reaching the Premier League.
Whether they can mount a successful promotion bid remains uncertain, but Hull fans have reasons to be excited about the new signings of left-sided player Ruben Vinagre and forward Liam Delap. Just like Norwich, Hull had an impressive pre-season, going undefeated even against teams like Galatasaray, Hatayspor, and Nantes.
Hull City's possible lineup
Ingram; Christie, Greaves, Jones, Vinagre; Slater, Seri, Tufan; Traore, Delap, Vaughan
Norwich City vs Hull City Expert Tips
In the past five encounters between Norwich City and Hull City, a total of 19 goals have been scored, setting the stage for what we expect to be another exciting match at Carrow Road. With the rebuilding process underway at Norwich under Wagner, expectations continue to be high at Carrow Road, a sentiment shared by the Hull side as well. Norwich's strong home record in this fixture gives them a slight advantage, and we predict that they will secure all three points from this upcoming game. We expect more than 2.5 goals in this game.