It would be difficult to over-emphasise just how much has changed at Carrow Road since those dark days at the end of Dean Smith’s tenure.

Back then a siege mentality had developed at the club, with the local media on the naughty step and fans being criticised for “giving up” on trying to generate a positive response from players who were producing football that was almost unwatchable.

Any insight into the club was highly sanitised and generated solely through its own channel,  giving it an air of propaganda rather than information, and there seemed precious little light at the end of the tunnel.

Fast forward to today, however, and with new majority owners (subject to procedural issues) and a young and exciting head coach with a squad full of developing talent, things could not look rosier, or the club be more open.

We can now enjoy regular behind the scenes looks at matchday and training sessions, and the excellent third episode of the video series On The Ball which was released on X during the international break gave fans the most revealing look inside the club so far this season.

One particularly interesting piece involved Ben Knapper and Johannes Hoff Thorup chatting on Zoom with Mark and Mike Attanasio about realistic timescales for players to learn the system and, interestingly, the need for City’s tactics to constantly evolve.

Clearly there is an understanding that what works now will need regular updating, and lessons have been learned from the fact that the last two head coaches were still using systems which had brought them success in the past but were now no longer as effective.

It was also good to discover that the first team and Academy are working together much more closely than in the past as City look to maximise their emerging talent and produce an effective production line to supplement signings.

It’s become clear to everyone that Thorup is an excellent communicator, which is incredibly refreshing after the cliché fest of Smith and the sometimes incomprehensible ramblings of David Wagner.

The Dane doesn’t duck difficult questions and seems happy to give detailed answers on tactical issues, such as team selection and substitutions, which give fans a much greater feel for his management style.

The video really is well worth seeking out because in addition to the points above, it gives a window into the day-to-day lives of players and staff as it follows Oscar Schwartau’s flat hunting and documents assistant head coach Glen Riddersholm’s genuine love for the city of Norwich.

However, despite the feelgood factor from the return to league action after another break for the pointless Nations League, which seems to have no real purpose other than to swell Uefa’s coffers, there are some difficult challenges ahead for the Canaries.

The first of these is the need to produce consistent performances, particularly with five of the next six games being away from home.

The second challenge will be coping with injuries. These are, of course, part of the game and something that all clubs have to deal with, but some are easier to compensate for than others.

City went into the break with question marks over three key players - Angus Gunn, Jose Cordoba and Marcelino Nunez - and the inevitable worries that others could return from international duty with knocks.

Fortunately, it seems that they may only be missing Gunn this afternoon and there would have been great relief when Josh Sargent returned in good shape.

City went into the last break with an impressive win at Coventry, but returned to action with a weak performance in the defeat at Swansea, and a visit to a Stoke side under new management will be a tough test, although it’s just the sort of fixture that sides with pretensions of being in the play-offs need to get something from.