Chris Sutton, a former Norwich City striker and pundit, says that new Canaries head coach Philippe Clement’s objective this season should be to maintain the team in the Championship.
Norwich had been looking for a new head coach since the resignation of Liam Manning earlier this month. Manning resigned after a terrible run of 11 league games without a win, which left the team 23rd in the table and four points from safety.
Following Manning’s departure, former Canaries Mark Fotheringham and Russell Martin were linked with the managerial vacancy, while the Norfolk club was also said to have held talks with Will Still, Gary O’Neil, and Jon Dahl Tomasson, but the latter two withdrew from the running in recent days.
Despite his name scarcely being mentioned during the recruiting process, Norwich revealed Clement’s surprising appointment on Tuesday morning, with the former Rangers manager signing a four-year contract that would keep him at Carrow Road until the summer of 2029.
Clement has been out of work since being fired by Rangers in February, when his team was 13 points behind Celtic in the Scottish Premiership table and had recently been ousted from the Scottish Cup following a devastating home defeat by second-tier club Queen’s Park.
Clement did, however, win 55 of his 86 games in command of the Gers, drawing 15 and losing 16, for a win rate of 64%. He also led the Glasgow club to Scottish League Cup glory during his first season at Ibrox.
Chris Sutton outlines clear Philippe Clement priorities upon Norwich City hire.
Sutton, who scored 36 goals and gave 15 assists in 119 games for Norwich as a player, frequently comments on events at his former club, and he took to social media to express his opinion to Clement’s appointment.
Sutton acknowledged earlier this month that he felt “really sorry” for Manning after his dismissal, claiming that he was “essentially being the fall guy for not getting the best out of the bang average new recruits” and was not the “primary reason” for the Canaries’ current plight.
Sutton is no stranger to Clement’s work, having covered many Rangers games as a Sky Sports pundit during the Belgian’s time at Ibrox, and he wished him well in his new role at Carrow Road, while insisting that the 51-year-old’s main priority should be to keep Norwich in the Championship this season.
“Best of luck to the great Belgian Philippe Clement at Norwich City. It’s not an easy undertaking to take over a team with low quality and confidence. Sutton commented on X, “The priority is to stay up this season.”
Clement will take command of the Canaries for the first time on Saturday, when they travel to Birmingham City at St Andrew’s @ Knighthead Park, followed by back-to-back home games against Oxford United and Queens Park Rangers next week.
Philippe Clement faces imminent Norwich City pressure as relegation concerns grow.
Sutton was harshly critical of Clement during his tenure as Rangers manager, and while he may have taken joy in his troubles at Ibrox given his Celtic links, he will undoubtedly be eager to assist turn around the fortunes of his old team Norwich.
Given the disastrous conclusion to Clement’s time at Ibrox, the Canaries have taken a significant risk in naming him as Manning’s replacement, and with the club now four points from safety, he cannot afford to get off to a bad start at Carrow Road.
While the club’s summer signings have been underwhelming, Norwich’s squad on paper should be capable of performing at a much higher level than they have so far this season, but the fact that they are in the relegation zone and have yet to pick up a point at home demonstrates the magnitude of the task Clement faces, and Sutton is correct that Championship survival must be his top priority.
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