Iwan Roberts: Norwich fixtures, Leicester loss, table settings

The majority of the squad have played in this league before and they know it's relentless, they know it's Saturday, Tuesday, Saturday, Wednesday, Sunday, Tuesday. They know games come thick and fast.

I think David Wagner was happy with his squad at the end of the transfer window and I think he's confident that he's got the strength in depth. He knows far, far better than anybody else what he's got to work with.

He has rested players for the League Cup and he will do so again when they go to Fulham next week.

Don't get me wrong, injuries to a couple of players haven't helped. It was a massive blow losing Josh Sargent the way they did, but when you are winning games, when you've been scoring goals, as they have been, you can't wait for the next game. You're bouncing into training.

With this schedule I doubt they will do that much in training – he will keep them ticking over, getting prepared for their next game, do their analysis work on the opposition. They'll get plenty of rest. It's not as if they're going to be flogging dead horses between games because they're not stupid. The game has moved on - they'll be eating properly, they'll be resting properly.

This is the Championship - the most competitive division because it's absolutely relentless. But you can’t use it as an excuse, because that's all it is, an excuse. You're not going to play any more games than anybody else.

Yes, there are a couple of long journeys coming up - Plymouth this weekend and Swansea, you can't get any further!

I am assuming they will fly to both of those games. In my days at Carrow Road we didn’t fly much – we flew to Cardiff for the play-off final in 2002 and we flew to Blackpool, a flight which put me off flying forever. It was blowing a gale up in in Blackpool and we were all over the place - Lee Marshall was being sick, Doug Livermore wasn’t too well either. It was horrendous.

After Plymouth it’s Craven Cottage next Wednesday for the League Cup - a bit of a free hit really.

City have nothing to lose and I don’t think the fans are too concerned about the League Cup this season. I think it's a game where Norwich take loads of fans down to Craven Cottage, because it's not too far, and they go and have a go at a decent Fulham side.

I can’t see David Wagner fielding his strongest line-up – I think he’ll have a look at what he's got, who needs minutes, who needs a bit of rest, who needs looking after, who needs wrapping up and then decide. It might not suit someone like Jonathan Rowe who’d love the chance to play against a Premier League defence and show what he’s all about.

Borja Sainz has got some minutes under his belt with the Under-21s this week so we may see him in action, especially as I can't see him starting just yet, the way Rowe and Christan Fassnacht are playing.

And there’s the strength in depth: Sainz has to be performing in training and impressing the manager on a daily basis and proving he’s ready if called upon.

And that in turn keeps Rowe and Fassnacht on their toes - you need to be looking over your shoulder. You know you can't take your foot off the pedal.

Bright in patches

On an awful night weather wise at Carrow Road on Wednesday night I really enjoyed the football that was on show.

Two of my former teams, having had very good starts to the season, going at it hammer and tongs in a proper game of chess on the field.

I thought Norwich started the game the stronger - Jack Stacey produced a good save in the opening minutes from Mads Hermanson and that was probably the closest Norwich came to scoring in the first half.

Enzo Maresca made five changes to the team that beat Southampton 4-1 the previous Friday night and even though they looked dangerous on the counter-attack they barely threatened Angus Gunn’s goal in that first half.

Just what Christian Fassnacht was thinking at the end of the first half when he clumsily barged Stephy Mavididi down in the Norwich penalty box only he knows. A penalty that maybe should have been saved by Angus as he got a good right hand to Kelechi Iheanacho’s strike. How Angus must hate facing the Foxes - that’s 14 goals he’s conceded in his last three appearances against them.

Norwich huffed and puffed in the second half: Shane Duffy probably should have scored with a pinpoint header that was really well saved by Hermanson, who was named player of the match on the night.

Leicester sealed the deal on 87 minutes with a really quick counter-attack with their young academy product Kasey McAteer putting the finishing touch to a really slick move.

It’s been a really good few days for Leicester City - if you finish above them this season you’re winning automatic promotion

That’s two losses in three games for Norwich City now - there’s work to be done.

Tables turned?

Looking at the Championship table, there are one or two surprise packages.

Leaders Preston for one – I saw them a couple of weeks ago and I think they're well organised. I don't think they've got any superstars, but they work their socks off as a team. Defensively, they have got the best record in the league and it goes to show once you have the defence sorted you can build on that.

Leicester are no surprise, nor Ipswich nor Norwich.

I did say Leeds and I did say Southampton. I do think Daniel Farke is beginning to turn it around at Leeds. You just get the feeling that he's putting his stamp and his authority on the team.

Southampton were in my top six, only because of the quality that they've got, but their defence is a big problem – 16 goals conceded in the opening six games is a Championship record, and that was before they lost at home to Ipswich on Tuesday.

Bristol City and Birmingham are doing well – I have to say I’d call them ‘slight’ surprises. Bristol City have put a nice run together and had some good results away from home. Their manager, Nigel Pearson, is a wise old campaigner who knows the division and is still highly thought of at Leicester.

At the bottom end, Rotherham sort of got away with it last season to a degree and I did think they’d be down there again. As for Sheffield Wednesday, I'm not surprised. I saw them on the opening night against Southampton and I thought they were poor.

Middlesbrough are the massive surprise to me.

They lost their top scorer, Chuba Akpom, who went to Ajax, and Aaron Ramsey, who they had on loan from Aston Villa and who joined Burnley for £12m.

So they have lost a few players – but their manager, Michael Carrick, has got to be looking over his shoulder. Last season people were saying if a Premier League job came up his name was written all over it. But you lose a couple of key players and you can't replace those players – and they’re struggling big time.