Norwich City manager Daniel Farke with his players. (Getty Images)
Norwich City earned a credible draw against West Brom last week, thanks to Jordan Rhodes’ equaliser late in the second half.
The Canaries have been in the upper reached of the league for large quarters of the season but a sticky patch of form in recent weeks has seen them drop out of the top two.
Daniel Farke’s men have won only one of their last seven games in all competitions and they will be looking to regain momentum by claiming all three points when they play host to 8th-placed Birmingham City on Friday night.
Birmingham have lost their last two games against West Ham in the FA Cup and Middlesbrough in the Championship but a win against Norwich might propel them to 7th in the standings.
Farke doesn’t have too many injuries to contend with heading into the weekend fixture. Moritz Leitner is ruled out with an ankle injury while Marco Stiepermann is doubtful to feature due to a thigh problem.
The Dutchman made some outstanding saves to keep Norwich in the game last week and he has always been a reliable presence between the sticks.
The youngster defended well and looked comfortable on the ball against West Brom last week and should retain his place.
The German won a lot of aerial duels at the heart of the defence and looked comfortable while bringing the ball out from the back in the last game.
He was caught out of position once last week but he put in a pretty solid performance at the back and should start this one as well.
He had a decent outing against West Brom and Farke should hand him another start.
The Norwegian veteran failed to break up the play effectively last week and Norwich will need a better performance from him this time around.
The Bosnian made some crunching challenges against West Brom and has been good all season in the centre of the park.
Emi Buendia didn’t look a 100 per cent fit in the last game and Farke should hand the German a start in place of him.
He had a decent outing last week and has chipped in with some valuable goals and assists for the Canaries this season.
The youngster has done really well in the Championship this season and Norwich will need their breakout star to spark that creativity in a No.10 role.
The Finnish international is currently one of the most prolific marksmen in the Championship with 16 goals to his name and he will be expected to fire on all cylinders against Birmingham.