Norwich’s proud unbeaten home record ended with a whimper as Bristol City came away with a well-deserved 2-0 Championship win.
The Canaries had gone 24 games without defeat at Carrow Road, stretching back to November of last year when Blackburn won 3-1 during David Wagner’s tenure as manager.
But, with a number of key players missing, they turned in a below-par display which allowed a well drilled Robins side to comfortably come away with the points.
They went ahead after 16 minutes when Anis Mehmeti, a former Norwich Academy player, drilled the ball home and made sure of the points just after the hour mark as Nakhi Wells produced a fine finish to a swift counter-attack.
Norwich made a bright start and almost edged ahead in the fourth minute when Emiliano Marcondes struck the upright with a header after his run into the box had been spotted by Callum Doyle – but they rarely threatened after that and the visitors made their first opportunity count.
A rare foray forward saw Haydon Roberts slip the ball inside to Mehmeti from the left and the Albanian international was allowed far too much time and space on the edge of the box before finding the corner of the net with a well placed low shot.
The Canaries were soon back on the front foot, but struggled to carve out clear chances in a lacklustre opening period, with keeper Max O’Leary comfortably dealing with anything that got past his well drilled defence.
Ante Crnac tested O’Leary with a low drive as the hosts continued to dominate possession after the break without looking particularly threatening.
The visitors were defending stoutly and relied on the occasional break and it was from one of these that they doubled their advantage after 63 minutes.
With Norwich losing the ball while pressing forward, Jason Knight raced free down the left before squaring for Wells who finished emphatically with a rising shot into the roof of the net.
In response Shane Duffy headed a corner inches over but the Robins saw the game out without undue alarm.
The managers
Norwich’s Johannes Hoff Thorup:
“This was a difficult game for us. I actually thought we started quite well but overall we struggled to find the rhythm and flow needed to create chances. Too many times we did things at a low level, low speed, taking too many touches.
“We need to be a lot better with our tempo and energy.
“At the other end every shot on target seems to be a goal – it has been a tough week for us and it will be good now for us to have a chance to work on things (in the international break).
“I think this shows that when we have some of our experienced players unavailable we are vulnerable, we struggle a bit and it doesn’t take much for us to become a bit shaky. We need to look at that too because even after the break we won’t have all our players back.
“We won’t hide from it – there will be some honest conversations with staff and players and together we will do whatever is needed to make us better.”
Bristol City’s Liam Manning:
“It was an excellent response to what happened on Tuesday when we put in an excellent performance only for a bad last 10 minutes to cost us.
“I thought we were brave on the ball today, defended well and made the most of the chances that came our way.
“The game management was terrific as well – Norwich are a good side and this is a difficult place to come to but I thought we saw it out really well.
“Overall they are a great group who I really enjoy working with. We brought in quite a few young players during the summer who have done well for us and can only get better.
“I am delighted with the level of performances so far and the only disappointment is that we haven’t picked up a few more points.”
