Norwich move a point off Championship lead thanks to first-half blitz against Birmingham City

Teemu Pukki
Teemu Pukki struck the first goal of the game Credit: PA

Norwich City 3 Birmingham City 1

Norwich City moved ahead of Sheffield United into second place and to within a point of Championship leaders Leeds United thanks to three goals in the first 25 minutes.

Daniel Farke’s side play both of their promotion rivals in their next two games. The Blades are due at Carrow Road in a week and Leeds host Norwich seven days later. Both Yorkshire teams have already beaten Norwich this season, back in August.

Teemu Pukki took his goal tally for club and country to 20 by opening the scoring but Che Adams quickly brought Birmingham level, only for Mario Vrancic and Tom Trybull to find their net before the game was half an hour old.

The setback left Birmingham still without a win in 2019 as Norwich themselves tasted victory for the first time since Christmas.

Che Adams
Che Adams' equaliser ended up counting for little Credit: pa

“It’s a massive win for us,” Farke said. “We played a terrific first half and their goal did not disturb us, which it easily could have done.”

Finland forward Pukki added: “We haven’t won for a while, so it was important to get the three points and we deserved to win.

“We have some promising guys in the team, so many good assists. I’m happy with the young guys and how they’re performing. We know where we are, we know how much work we have to do.”

Pukki had already gone close before he bundled home Jamal Lewis’s delivery to the near post to give Norwich a 13th-minute lead. That lasted all of 78 seconds, however, as Adams, played in by Jota, got in front of his man to launch a rising drive that flashed past goalkeeper Tim Krul at his near post.

It took Norwich longer to regain the lead but only 22 minutes were on the clock when Vrancic received the ball on the edge of the box from Emi Buendia and slotted a low drive between Blues goalkeeper Lee Camp and his left-hand post.

The crazy sequence of scoring continued when Trybull rose unmarked to head home Buendia’s corner in the 25th minute, with Pukki inches away from flicking in a fourth within a minute of that.

Birmingham were rattled and both Maikel Kieftenbeld and Kristian Pedersen were booked for clattering the lively Buendia, who limped off minutes before half-time, almost certainly as a result.

“There were some really nasty fouls,” said Farke, who was already without a number of usual picks through injury. “You wish players have a bit more protection.”

The second half was a non-event in comparison, although Isaac Vassell, a cousin of former England striker Darius Vassell and a replacement for Lukas Jutkiewicz, was fortunate to escape even a booking for a two-footed challenge on Tom Trybull.

“No excuses from us, Norwich deserved to win the game,” admitted Garry Monk, the Birmingham manager, who has been able to sign Swedish free agent Kerim Mrabti despite the club’s transfer restrictions.

“He will need time to settle but we are delighted to have him here,” Monk said.

Match details

Norwich City: Krul; Aarons, Zimmermann, Godfrey, Lewis; Trybull, Vrancic; Buendia (Cantwell 39), Stiepermann, Hernandez (McLean 90); Pukki (Rhodes 85)
Subs: McGovern (g), Passlack, Hanley, Srbeny

Birmingham City: Camp; Colin, Morrison, Dean, Pedersen; Jota (Mahoney 71), G Gardner, Kieftenbeld (C Gardner 56), Maghoma; Adams, Jutkiewicz (Vassell 61)
Subs: Trueman (g), Solomon-Otabor, Dacres-Cogley, Harding.
Booked: Pedersen, Kieftenbeld, C Gardner, Morrison

Referee: Tim Robinson

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