Norwich vs Brighton
England – The Championship
Date: Friday, 21st April 2017
Kick off 19:45 UK / 20:45 CET
Venue: Carrow Road (Norwich)
TEAM NEWS
Albion manager Chris Hughton confirmed Sam Baldock [glut] will be unavailable again, but has no fresh injury concerns ahead of Friday’s game at Carrow Road.
Shane Duffy [foot] and Connor Goldson [heart condition] are the only other absentees, with both defenders unlikely to feature in any of Albion’s final three games of the season.
For Norwich, Matt Jarvis (hip) is unlikely to feature after suffering a fresh injury blow playing for the club’s under-23 side, while Youssouf Mulumbu is also a doubt.
Brighton secured promotion to the Premier League for the first time in the club’s history after beating Wigan Athletic 2-1 on Monday, with Huddersfield Town’s draw at Derby County sealing the deal in the late kick-off.
Glenn Murray and Solly March scored goals to put the Seagulls 2-0 ahead, and despite Nick Powell’s late consolation, Albion held on before thousands of supporters flooded onto the pitch to celebrate promotion.
The Seagulls had moved closer to promotion after stringing together four successive victories, starting with a 1-0 home success over Blackburn Rovers, with Murray finding the back of the net.
Another three points were secured against Birmingham City at the Amex, as goals from Murray, Tomer Hemed and Uwe Huenemeier wrapped things up in a 3-1 win.
Murray was on the scoresheet again as Albion overcame Queens Park Rangers 2-1 at Loftus Road, with Sebastien Pocognoli adding a second with a superb free kick.
Another clean sheet and three points came against Wolverhampton Wanderers at Molineux, as Anthony Knockaert’s double moved the Seagulls one step closer to reaching the Premier League.
Norwich have had an inconsistent month with two victories and three defeats, beginning with back-to-back away losses at Aston Villa and Huddersfield, as they were beaten 2-0 and 3-0 respectively.
Alan Irvine’s team then bounced back with a jaw-dropping 7-1 victory over play-off contenders Reading at Carrow Road, before losing 3-1 to ten-man Fulham at home.
The Canaries head into Friday’s game on the back of an impressive 3-1 win over Preston North End at Deepdale, as goals from Graham Dorrans, Josh Murphy and James Maddison secured all three points.
Norwich vs Brighton: Head to head
In terms of head to head clashes The Canaries are far better than the Seagulls. Norwich have 6 victories, Brighton 2 and the draws are also 2 in their last 10 games.
At Carrow Road Norwich have 3 wins and 1 draw and defeat each.
Last game finished with a 5-0 victory for Brighton in late October.
