Both commencing their 2024-25 pre-season campaigns, Northampton Town and Norwich City lock horns at Sixfields for a friendly encounter on Saturday afternoon.
While the hosts are gearing up for a second successive campaign in League One, the Canaries will play their first non-competitive match under new management.
Match preview
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Perennial pyramid hoppers between League One and League Two, Northampton Town's first season back in the third tier last term could be considered a success, as Jon Brady led his side to survival with a respectable 14th-placed finish.
That ranking actually represented the hosts' highest placement in the English Football League sine a ninth-placed finish in the 2007-08 League One campaign, as Brady's men collected 60 points to convincingly avoid a swift demotion back down to the fourth tier.
Now set for a fourth straight season under the wing of Brady - who took charge midway through the 2020-21 campaign - Northampton only have one home friendly currently pencilled in; their other three exhibition matches of the summer will be played on rival turf.
Following Saturday's opening battle, Brady's men will make the trek to Brackley Town, King's Lynn Town and Cheltenham Town and will appropriately begin the 2023-24 League One season on the road, visiting Bristol Rovers on August 10.
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While Northampton have put their faith in Brady for over three years now, Norwich have turned to another new face in their bid to return to the Premier League at the third time of asking, replacing David Wagner with the much more youthful Johannes Thorup.
The 35-year-old made a name for himself at Danish outfit Nordsjælland - whom he led to a second-placed finish in the 2022-23 SuperLiga season - before being hired by the Canaries on a three-year contract, as the East Anglian outfit bid to banish last season's playoff demons.
After narrowly edging out Hull City for the final playoff spot in the Championship table, Norwich held Leeds United to a goalless draw in their opening playoff semi-final tie before being thumped 4-0 at Carrow Road, marking a sombre end to Wagner's short-lived tenure.
That thrashing represented a fifth straight match without victory for Norwich, who were scheduled to commence their pre-season period against Stevenage on Tuesday evening, only to see that friendly unexpectedly cancelled due to pitch refurbishment works.
However, a jaunt to Belgium to face Club Brugge and Standard Liege still awaits Norwich, who will also take on a trio of German outfits in 1. FC Magdeburg, Hoffenheim and St Pauli in the next few weeks, meaning that Northampton are the only English side that Thorup's men will butt heads with in pre-season.
Team News
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There has been significant movement both in and outside of Sixfields during the summer window, as a total of nine players have already sought pastures new, including Louis Appere, Sam Sherring and Manny Monthe.
In response, the Cobblers have added James Wilson, Nik Tzanev, Cameron McGeehan and Jack Baldwin to their ranks, as well as signing Salford City striker Callum Morton on loan for the 2023-24 season.
Wilson and Morton are now the only two recognised out-and-out strikers in the Cobblers' ranks, meaning that at least one of the pair should make their unofficial debuts for the club on Saturday.
In terms of Norwich's transfer activity, Panama centre-back Jose Cordoba has been the Canaries' marquee addition so far this summer, while the likes of Ben Gibson, Dimitris Giannoulis, Christos Tzolis, Sam McCallum and Danny Batth have all departed.
Cordoba will not be seen in the Norwich strip just yet, having been involved in Panama's Copa America campaign, while Marcelino Nunez (Chile) and Joshua Sargent (USA) should be given more time to recover from their transatlantic exploits too.
Meanwhile, Scotland trio Angus Gunn, Grant Hanley and Kenny McLean could not help to guide Steve Clarke's men into the knockout rounds of Euro 2024, and they should not be back in non-competitive action just yet either.
Following a successful loan spell at Celtic, Adam Idah has already been the subject of one failed bid from the Bhoys, and there is no suggestion that he will not be involved as normal in pre-season.
Northampton Town possible starting lineup:
Tzanev; Willis, Baldwin, Guthrie; McGowan, Sowerby, McGeehan, Brough; Hoskins, Wilson, Pinnock
Norwich City possible starting lineup:
Long; Stacey, Duffy, Tomkinson, Fisher; Sara, Sorensen; Fassnacht, Rowe, Sainz; Idah
We say: Northampton Town 0-2 Norwich City
Whether a strong XI or hotchpotch Norwich side takes to the field from the first whistle remains to be seen, but Thorup will certainly chop and change during the game in order to get minutes into as many players' legs as possible.
International exploits means that the Canaries will inevitably be slightly weaker, but they should still possess too much strength for their League One counterparts, especially with a new manager bounce in tow.
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