Norwich City v Bristol City: Liam Manning’s preview

The former Norwich season ticket holder returns to his birthplace this weekend hoping for a reaction from his side after a painful midweek loss to Sheffield United. 

Norwich are also in a tough place after suffering successive defeats to Cardiff and Sheffield Wednesday amid a spate of injuries that has tested their squad to the limit in the last week. 

Manning has injury troubles of his own to contend with ahead of Saturday’s encounter, and is expecting a game of small margins against Johannes Hoff Thorup’s side. 

“[It’s] an extremely difficult game” the Robins boss said in his midweek press conference.

“You only have to see with the results [in the Championship], like Millwall beating Leeds last night, it’s so unpredictable. The margins are so fine, they’re so tight.

“It’s a tough game; Norwich obviously have had a decent start. I think they’re similar to us; they’ve got a few injuries themselves as well. It’s a tough place to go at any time.

“But we should look forward to the challenge. I remember going there at the back end of last season and, performance-wise, it was one of the most enjoyable in terms of what we wanted the team to look like. We had a bit of everything that day, albeit not scoring the goals. In terms of a place to go, we know it’s difficult but it’s one that with any game we should be looking forward to.”

Norwich are now one-year unbeaten on home turf, but that record is expected to be significantly stressed by the Robins with nine players sidelined - more than anyone else in the Championship. 

Despite the current on-pitch challenges, Thorup has made a bright first-impression and has been constantly praised by his fellow second tier bosses. 

Johannes Hoff Thorup has earned praise from his Championship peers. (Image: Paul Chesterton/Focus Images Ltd)“There are definitely differences in their set-up and how they play and what they’re trying to do,” Manning said.

“There are certain similarities in terms of the profile of players. When you’ve got certain players with certain qualities, they still come out.

"But there’s definitely a difference in what they’re doing now to last season. We’ll do our homework. We’ll make sure the players are aware. The biggest amount of work goes into us, and what we need to do and play the way that we want to. ”

Bristol City's nine-game unbeaten run ended in heartbreaking fashion when Sheffield United struck late twice to claim a dramatic win at Ashton Gate in midweek. 

A defeat of that nature can create longer lasting repercussions, as Norwich discovered themselves last weekend against Cardiff.

As Manning celebrates his one-year anniversary in charge of the club, the challenge is to produce an immediate response, and the 39-year-old hopes his squad can replicate the level of performance that earned them plaudits and a point in April during Norwich’s charge to the play-offs.

“It’s not the be all and end all but it’s important to do everything that you can,” Manning told Bristol Live.

Bristol City suffered late midweek heartbreak against Sheffield United. (Image: Nick Potts/PA) “We lost to Blackburn Rovers and Derby Country in a row and then we responded and went on a decent run of performances and results. We’ll be doing everything as we do every single game, everything in our power to try and perform and win at the weekend.

“That’s the biggest bit for me; how do you respond? How do you stick together and reflect accurately? How do you not get too hung up on it? We can’t control it, it’s happened. We lost; we didn’t want to. We probably didn’t deserve to, but we decide what we carry forward from the past and that’s the big message for the players.

“When we arrive at Norwich, just before kick-off we decide what state we go into that game. We have to take confidence from the games so far, from our performances. We have to take belief, bravery, togetherness. There are so many things that we decide to carry forward and that’s a really important factor going into Saturday.”