Two of the Championship's early promotion contenders go head to head in a fascinating clash on Saturday as Norwich City host Swansea City.
After 10 games played, the teams sit third and second in the table respectively and will know a win in this match would be a big statement of intent.
Match preview
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Norwich extended their unbeaten run to six matches in midweek with a 0-0 draw against Millwall, as they failed to score for only the second time this season.
However Daniel Farke felt his side should have taken more from the game as they had a total of 27 shots, with Przemyslaw Placheta hitting the post and Emi Buendia seeing an effort blocked on the line.
Nonetheless, Farke has done well to make Norwich a confident and stable side again and has managed to shake the losing mentality that they obtained in the Premier League last season.
After a mixed start to life back in the Championship, the Canaries are starting to come into their own and rank first in the division for average shots per game, possession and pass success rate.
Like Farke, Swansea boss Steve Cooper was disappointed with a point after his team drew 1-1 with Brentford on Tuesday night.
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"We were miles the better team, we created all the chances, we were excellent. And we've still not won," an exasperated Cooper said.
Andre Ayew netted his fifth goal of the season in West London as the Welsh outfit could not quite get revenge on the side who beat them in the playoffs last season.
They are still yet to lose away from home this season though, meaning their unbeaten run on the road in the league stands at an impressive 11 games.
There have been some high-scoring games between these two sides recently, with Norwich winning 3-2, 4-3 and 4-1 in the last 10 years. There has been not been a goalless draw in this fixture since 1964.
Another entertaining match surely awaits, with both teams keen to play attractive football and stake an early claim for a place in the Premier League.
Norwich City Championship form: WWWDWD
Swansea City Championship form: LDDWWD
Team News
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Todd Cantwell missed the draw with Millwall after picking up a knock in training, but is back in contention to feature against Swansea.
Christoph Zimmermann is fit again, but will likely have to settle for a place on the bench due to the good form of centre-back pairing Grant Hanley and Ben Gibson.
Ben Cabango withdrew from Swansea's starting XI against Brentford at the last minute and is a doubt for the weekend.
Matt Grimes and Viktor Gyokeres are both pushing for starts after impressing off the bench against the Bees.
Norwich City possible starting lineup:
Krul; Aarons, Hanley, Gibson, Sorensen; Skipp, Rupp; Buendia, Cantwell, Placheta; Pukki
Swansea City possible starting lineup:
Woodman; Naughton, Bennett, Guehi; Roberts, Fulton, Smith, Grimes, Bidwell; Ayew, Gyokeres
We say: Norwich City 1-1 Swansea City
This is certainly the game to keep an eye out for in the Championship over the weekend, and it is too close for us to call. Both teams will be keen to attack early on, but ultimately may decide that they do not want to risk losing and instead settle for a point.
Top betting tip
Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting a home win in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Home Win:data
Olly Allen
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Norwich City win with a probability of 37.28%. A win for Swansea City had a probability of 35.73% and a draw had a probability of 27%.
The most likely scoreline for a Norwich City win was 1-0 with a probability of 10.37%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (8.12%) and 2-0 (6.58%). The likeliest Swansea City win was 0-1 (10.11%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (12.81%). The actual scoreline of 1-0 was predicted with a 10.4% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted a 1-0 win for Norwich City in this match.
