Plymouth vs Norwich prediction: ENGLAND: Championship betting tips on match 2023-09-22 14:00.
A 4-1 defeat at Bristol City in midweek, their heaviest reverse of the Championship season so far, was described by Plymouth boss Steven Schumacher as “by far the worst performance that we have had in ages”. That prompted angry cries of “this is embarrassing” from the travelling Plymouth faithful, who will probably be glad of a return to Home Park this weekend, where both of their league wins this term have arrived.
Norwich City lie in wait, a side Plymouth haven’t faced since 2009, but having lost the last three H2Hs, they’re probably glad of that. Snapping that losing run will now be the primary aim for Schumacher, who knows the key to their revival probably lies in tightening up at the back, as despite scoring in five successive Championship games, Argyle have won just once (L4), scoring exactly one goal in each defeat.
In spite of a 2-0 defeat against Leicester in midweek, Norwich boss David Wagner insisted his side were “very good” and perhaps a little unfortunate to come out of the game empty handed. They go from one extreme to another here, as while Leicester plied their trade in the top-flight last season, Plymouth played in League One, so the gulf in class Wagner alluded to after the Foxes game should theoretically swing in Norwich’s favour here.
Something else they’ll hope to see swing back in their favour in the south east is their alternating win/loss run over the past four games (W2, L2). Whether that happens or not is anyone’s guess, as a perfectly split away league record this season (W1, D1, L1) shows you never quite know what you’re going to get from the Canaries besides entertainment, as those three outings witnessed a whopping 15 goals!
Players to watch: Plymouth’s Morgan Whittaker netted the winner in last season’s 2-1 home win against Norwich’s bitter rivals, Ipswich, but three of his last four club goals were game openers. Summer recruit Christian Fassnacht may have to wait a little longer for an impact, as he has seen his two Norwich goals arrive in the second half of away league games.
Hot stat: Ahead of the round, Plymouth have conceded a joint-league high four goals in the opening ten minutes of their Championship games this season.