Norwich City: Ben Gibson's 2023-24 season analysed

What was more appropriate in his final season at Norwich City, however, was 'you only know it's good when it's going'.

From fairly early on in the campaign it was clear that his would be Gibson's last at Carrow Road, with his contract up in the summer and sporting director Ben Knapper open about his desire to lower the squad's age profile upon arrival.

There was also a sense that moving on would be best for the 31-year-old, having struggled for two years to fight the perils of injury and poor form, while taking the role of scapegoat on a number of occasions.

But that knowledge almost highlighted the strengths of his game, from aerial dominance to an imposing ability to progress the ball up the pitch. It wasn't too long, after all, since he'd played a key role in City strolling to the Championship title.

Gibson was used to being the scapegoat (Image: Paul Chesterton/Focus Images Ltd)

David Wagner also saw those strengths, and when Gibson was available he started, almost without exception. There was doubt over whether he'd make it back into the line-up after Kenny McLean had shone in his position, but before long he returned.

His headed opener in the FA Cup defeat against Liverpool at Anfield was a highlight, especially in the context of his recent revelations about the personal difficulties he'd gone through.

There were also several solid performances late in the campaign, with City's reliably old-school defending a key feature of an unbeaten home run that stretched from November all the way to May.

There were, of course, low points, and anyone responsible for defending during a 6-2 loss to Plymouth Argyle will avoid memories of that afternoon to this day. Gibson is certainly one of them.

A humiliating play-off loss at Leeds was another game to forget, as were displays against Sunderland and Middlesbrough in between.

But overall his last year as a Norwich player will be remembered positively, and likely earns him a decent move to another second-tier club. A reunion as soon as next season feels very possible, and Gibson won't be viewed as easy opposition.

There will always be detractors, and between 2021 and 2023 they were often justified when it came to Gibson. He didn't look the same after a nasty ankle injury late in his first season at the club, and promotion to the Premier League left him seriously exposed.

The dull mediocrity of his third year at Norwich was made worse by constant injury issues and the failure to forge a starting berth under Dean Smith, with few expecting such a major role to be played under Wagner.

But Gibson, in large part, found himself again in the 2023-24 term, and found a way to leave fans with positive memories of his well-timed interventions and technical skill, rather than the physical shortcomings that defined that tough period.

In fact, the pace deficit he's struggled with for most of his career might have been a real issue in Wagner's system, where a high defensive line could be common. There haven't been too many strikers who have caused him problems in behind, however.

QPR's Sinclair Armstrong gave him a pretty torrid afternoon in West London, but otherwise it's hard to recall an occasion on which Gibson was beaten in a one-to-one battle. That's not bad for someone who had been written off in almost all quarters.

But for Norwich there's a new era that's already begun, with Knapper shifting the dial from old to new in sharp fashion. That was always likely to mean the end for their number four, and he coped with the uncertainty of his future remarkably well.

He leaves Norfolk as not only a title winner, but someone who's had two impressive seasons in yellow and green.