After the highs of last season, in which they stormed to the top of the Championship table and finally returned to the promised land after a three-year absence, it’s not been a happy return, and – barring a place in the FA Cup quarter-finals – a season to forget for fans of Norwich City. With just one win from their last six games and six points adrift of safety, football odds are undoubtedly in their favour. But where does their season rank amongst the worst? Let’s take a look at some of the stats that Canaries fan would much rather not see.
Fewest points
So far this campaign, Norwich have accumulated 21 points, some way ahead of the lowest points tally in Premier League history. By the law of averages, they are predicted to finish on 27 points, which would mirror the same points total as their rivals, Ipswich Town in the 1994-95 season.
Of course, Derby County hold the unwanted record of the fewest points won in a single season in the top-flight and their dismal total of 11 points during the 2007-08 season doesn’t look likely to ever be beaten. In recent seasons, Huddersfield Town famously dropped back down to the Championship last season with a pretty appalling total of 16 points, which places them third in the list, while Fulham ended that same year with 26 points and sit outside of the top 10 when it comes to the fewest points scored.
Fewest away wins
You have to go back as far as November 23rd 2019 to the first and last time Norwich won on the road this campaign. The 2-0 win at Everton put an end to a run of seven league games without a win – but unfortunately, a similar vein of form followed, with nearly two whole months passing before the Canaries won another match.
Remarkably, should Norwich end of the season with just that one solitary away win, they wouldn’t return to the record books. There have been six occasions where a team has failed to win a single away game, most recently Hull City in 2009-10. Norwich are one of those six teams though, with their unwanted record coming in 2004-05 – where had they not lost to Fulham 6-0 on the final day, they would have also stayed up.
This campaign, Norwich still have to travel to the Emirates, Stamford Bridge and the Etihad, so the odds are stacked against them picking up any more wins on the road. The likeliest source of points will come with a trip to Watford on April 18th.
Fewest goals scored
As things stand, Norwich have scored the fewest goals in the top-flight this season, netting 25 in 29 games – an average of 0.86 a match – and by this reckoning, they are likely to end the campaign with a total of 32 goals scored.
While this wouldn’t be the worst of any team in the Premier League – Derby County hold that record with just 20 goals scored in that infamous 2007-08 season – scoring less than a goal per game is a key factor for the uncompromising position they find themselves in. Last year in the Championship, Teemu Pukki fired the Canaries to success, and while he’s scored 11 goals in 28 starts, it has been a huge step-up for the Finnish striker. Pukki has contributed most of the goals this campaign, and it seems as though the Canaries have been over-reliant on their talisman once again – with few goals coming from anywhere else.
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With just nine games remaining, there is little time for Norwich to turnaround their fortunes. Southampton who aren’t out of the mire yet are the next opponents at Carrow Road and you can’t help but think that this home clash is very much the last-chance saloon for Daniel Farke’s side. While fine margins are often considered a football cliché, these fine margins could well be the difference between Norwich extending their tenure in the top-flight or becoming another yo-yo club.
