Norwich City: David Wagner praised for stunning league start

The Canaries remain unbeaten in the Championship, having taken 10 points from a possible 12 and successfully navigating two rounds in the Carabao Cup. 

City are the top scorers in the division and have defied negative pre-season predictions with their performances to date. 

Not The Top 20 podcast have heaped praise on City's boss in their latest EFL newsletter which hosts monthly awards for the Manager of the Month, Best Player and Best Young Player in August. 

Norwich have completed a clean sweep with Gabriel Sara and Jonathan Rowe winning Best Player and Best Young Player of the Month. 

Wagner has been selected as their managerial pick for his work in helping Norwich race out of the blocks in the Championship. 

"Norwich City have been the all-round most impressive team in the Championship in the month of August," they write.

"Pre-season, the feeling was that Norwich City was a club amidst a tempestuous atmosphere with a somewhat disillusioned fanbase. Wagner had joined in January, with the club 11th. They finished 13th, losing more games than they won under their new manager. On top of that, did the summer additions set the pulses racing? Not mine. Not on paper.

"All that has been proven complete nonsense. David Wagner takes huge credit for that.

"Wagner has ticked every box. The team are winning. The fans are loving the manner in which they are playing. Shane Duffy, Jack Stacey, Ashley Barnes, and Christian Fassnacht have all found spots in the team and look like they’ve been playing for the club for years.

"Despite missing 95% of last season, Jon Rowe’s quality was noted and a space in the team was earmarked for him. The departures of Teemu Pukki, Max Aarons, Kieron Dowell haven’t affected the team whatsoever.

"Even if it’s not sustainable, and they lose every single match from here until the rest of the season, Wagner’s managerial performance in August has been the most impressive in the Championship."

Gabriel Sara has made an impressive start to the season for Norwich City. (Image: Paul Chesterton/Focus Images Ltd)

Sara's individual performances have stood out and the Brazilian seems to have found an extra gear even though he is still working his way to full fitness. 

Not the Top 20, who cover the EFL extensively, believe he ranks among the very best in the division within his position. 

"When you have a central midfielder playing like this, it’s as if you have an extra player on the pitch. Tenacious in the tackle. Quality on the ball. Creating chances for fun and scoring a beautiful goal to boot.

"Gabriel Sara has stepped into the Gus Hamer role as the Championship’s best all-round central midfielder."

Rowe has taken the accolade of Best Young Player in the Championship this month, having netted five goals in as many matches. 

"This month, Jon Rowe has been the definition of End Product. A screamer into the top corner from 20 yards with his weaker left foot," they say.

"A header from a corner. A quick-release right foot shot, curled into the far corner with no back-lift. And a poacher’s goal, sprinting into the box when the ball was out-wide, outpacing his marker and finishing a low cross first time.

"Jon Rowe has been a phenomenon in the month of August; a player who had never started a league game before, and has now scored in all four Championship starts. Joint top scorer in the league, with a tally not boosted by penalties (like Adam Armstrong) or one standout performance (Ozan Tufan’s hat-trick vs Sheff Wed)."

Young defender Brad Hills was awarded League Two Young Player of the Month after a string of impressive performances for Accrington Stanley. 

- The EFL Newsletter by Not The Top 20 covers the EFL as a whole with weekend recaps on a Monday, previews on Friday and extra content in the form of awards, tactics articles, opinions pieces.