Preview: Norwich City vs Burnley - prediction, team news, lineups

Norwich City and Burnley will both bid to bounce back from disappointing starts to the Championship season on Saturday, when they square off at Carrow Road in the third round of league fixtures.

The hosts have lost both league games thus far, while the visitors have managed a draw and a defeat before they had contrasting fortunes in midweek EFL Cup ties.

Match preview

Norwich City return to Carrow Road on Saturday with the hopes of putting their first points on the board in the Championship after a poor start.

They headed into a first full season under the management of Philippe Clement with plenty of optimism, having earned 56 points from their 31 league games after his arrival last term to climb away from the threat of relegation and into a ninth-placed finish.

After kicking off 2026-27 with an EFL Cup win over MK Dons, the Canaries failed to immediately pick up where they left off as one of the division's form teams in 2026, suffering consecutive defeats as they firstly lost 2-1 at home to West Bromwich Albion before Tairyk Arconte's brace and Luke Cundle's goal condemned them to a 3-0 beating away at Millwall last weekend.

Clement's men were, at least, able to bounce back to winning ways in midweek though, visiting Cardiff City in the EFL Cup second round and progressing with a 2-1 victory, having carried a two-goal victory into injury time through Mathias Kvistgaarden and Ante Crnac.

Now focussing back on the Championship having only scored once and conceded five goals in their first two attempts, Norwich City will hope to carry their midweek form into Saturday and put their first three points on the board at Carrow Road.

Their visitors, meanwhile, will also bid to kickstart their Championship campaign at Carrow Road on Saturday after a winless start.

Burnley arrived back in England's second tier this summer after Premier League relegation under the new management of Nicky Hayen and with the hopes of an immediate return to the top flight again, having achieved promotion in each of their last four Championship campaigns.

In Hayen's first competitive game at the helm, the Clarets scraped past Notts County in the EFL Cup, drawing 1-1 and winning a penalty shootout, before coming from behind to earn a point from a 2-2 draw against West Ham United in their league opener thanks to Zian Flemming's brace in the final 10 minutes.

A trip to West Bromwich Albion followed on Sunday, and the Lancashire outfit suffered a 3-1 defeat, having led early through an own goal, before another disappointing result followed on Wednesday as they visited third-tier Bradford City in the EFL Cup and drew 0-0 before bowing out and losing a penalty shootout.

Now with their full focus on the Championship and the hopes of getting up and running in their promotion bid under new management, Burnley head to Carrow Road in search of a first three-point haul.

Norwich City Championship form:

L L

Norwich City form (all competitions):

W L L W

Burnley Championship form:

D L

Burnley form (all competitions):

W D L L

Team News

Norwich City remain without defender Jose Cordoba due to a suspension, while Ali Ahmed, Paris Maghoma, Mirko Topic, Jovon Makama and Lucien Mahovo are sidelined by injuries.

Young Cruzeiro loanee Bruno Alves joined Ruairi McConville at the back in midweek in Cordoba's absence, but Harry Darling should return to the starting XI at the weekend, while Clement may make some changes to the team that lost 3-0 to Millwall last Saturday after some midweek rotations.

Ante Crnac is back in contention, having scored off the bench on Tuesday on his return from a long-term injury, but he should be eased back in with Oscar Schwartau, Mohamed Toure, Andre Brooks, Papa Amadou Diallo and Anthony Musaba all having claims to start at the top end of the pitch.

Burnley are still without midfielder Josh Cullen, who has been sidelined with a long-term injury since December.

Lyle Foster is also yet to feature this season through injury, while key man Zian Flemming has missed the last two games with a knock, meaning Armando Broja should continue to lead the line.

Hannibal Mejbri will likely to return to the midfield from the outset after appearing off the bench in the EFL Cup, while Anel Ahmedhodzic made his debut in defence after arriving from Feyenoord and he will compete for a first league start.

Norwich City possible starting lineup:

Kovacevic; Stacey, Darling, McConville, Chrisene; McLean, Mattsson; Musaba, Slimane, Schwartau; Toure

Burnley possible starting lineup:

Weiss; Walker, Ahmedhodzic, Alleyne, Humphreys; Mejbri, Laurent; Edwards, Ramsey, Bruun Larsen; Broja

We say: Norwich City 2-1 Burnley

Both teams looked poised to challenge right at the top end of the Championship this season but are yet to get up and running.

The hosts do, at least, have a record of performing well under Clement from last season, and have a chance to put last weekend's 3-0 loss behind them with renewed optimism from a midweek win.

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