Championship | Gameweek 23

Dec 26, 2024 at 3pm UK

Carrow Road

Norwich vs Millwall

Match preview

Norwich are still searching for their first win of December, having taken just one point from four games since beating Luton Town at the end of November.

The Canaries followed that result with a 3-0 defeat at QPR and a goalless draw at Portsmouth, before letting a slender lead slip in a 2-1 home defeat to Burnley.

They suffered a similar fate away to Sunderland, losing 2-1 despite taking the lead through Anis Ben Slimane's 21st-minute opener.

Norwich's poor run of form has left them 13th in the table, nine points adrift of the top six and eight points above the bottom three.

Norwich now turn their attention to back-to-back home games against Millwall and QPR, with the Canaries eager to showcase their firepower after scoring 26 goals in their 10 home league games at Carrow Road this season - a return only equalled by Leeds' 29-goal haul at Elland Road.

The Canaries will also be buoyed by the fact that they have won three of their last four games against Millwall, including a 3-1 victory in their last home meeting in August 2023.

David Livermore is preparing for his second game as Millwall's caretaker boss after taking over following the departure of Neil Harris earlier this month.

Harris left his post after overseeing a six-match winless run, which included three consecutive draws and three 1-0 defeats.

Millwall's winless run looked set to continue when they hosted Blackburn Rovers at home on Saturday, but Mihailo Ivanovic's 96th-minute winner secured all three points and ended their opponents' six-game winning streak.

Millwall's first win since November 6 leaves them 10th in the Championship table, seven points adrift of the top six ahead of Thursday's away trip to Norwich City.

The Lions will be looking to improve in the final third after failing to score more than once in any of their previous 14 games.

Having failed to win any of their last 20 league meetings with Norwich (D7, L13), the visitors will be looking to beat the Canaries on the road for the first time since a 3-0 victory in November 1968.

Recent Performance

Norwich City Championship form:WWLDLL

Millwall Championship form:DDLLLW

Team News

Norwich boss Jess Thorup will be without first-choice striker Josh Sargent, who has been sidelined since the end of October with a groin injury.

The Canaries will also be without Gabe Forsyth and Liam Gibbs due to knee and hamstring problems respectively.

Kenny McLean will serve the final game of a four-match ban, while Jose Cordoba is suspended for the Boxing Day clash after being sent off for two bookable offences against Sunderland.

The visitors will be without the injured Jake Cooper, Josh Coburn, Daniel Kelly and Calum Scanlon.

Defender Danny McNamara was added to the list of absentees after missing the 1-0 win over Blackburn with a knee injury.

Ivanovic is pushing for his third Championship start of the season after coming off the bench to score the winner at the weekend.

Possible starting lineup

Norwich City possible starting lineup:

Gunn; Stacey, Duffy, Doyle, Chrisene; Marcondes, Nunez, Slimane; Hernandez, Sainz, Crnac

Millwall possible starting lineup:

Jensen; Leonard, Tanganga, Wallace, Bryan; Saville, Norre; Azeez, Esse, Emakhu; Ivanovic