The date is 8th November 2025. Norwich City have lost their 7th successive home game, have failed to win at home at all this season and sit in 23rd, firmly in the Championship relegation zone. Fans swarm outside the director’s entrance, demanding answers and action, with chants demanding the sacking of just about every member of staff, but one rings louder than all – “SACK LIAM MANNING”.
How did things get this bad, who led Norwich down this path of failure, and more importantly, who has since saved them?
Liam Manning was appointed manager of Norwich City in the summer of 2025, having guided Bristol City to an above-expectations position of 6th the year before. A born-and-bred Norfolk lad, and ex-season ticket holder, this appointment sounded like a match made in heaven for the Canaries, who had been floundering in mid-table mediocrity since their relegation from the Premier League three years prior.
However, a home loss to Millwall to open the season was an abrupt reality check. Although one or two wins were picked up on the road, it was clear from their home performances that Norwich City were in real trouble. Painful losses came one after another, with the worst being a 3-1 loss to Ipswich Town, their local rivals, which ended a 16-year unbeaten streak in the fixture. The mood at Carrow Road turned sour and toxic. The fans deflated and angry, the players and coach booed off the pitch after every game; it was clear something had to change. The fans demanded the sacking of the sporting director, Ben Knapper, along with Manning. Swarming the director’s entrance after every home loss in an angry mob, they demanded action be taken, and eventually, they got their wish.
After an embarrassing 2-1 loss against Leicester, their 7th successive home defeat, and following their worst start to a league season since 2009, Manning was fired.
To many fans, myself included, the embarrassing fate of relegation seemed inevitable. The search was on for the man who would be responsible for avoiding the car-crash that the club was quickly speeding towards. Several names were floated around fan communities – Russell Martin, an ex-captain of the Canaries who coached Southampton to the promised land of the Premier League two years ago, was a leading candidate, as well as various names from across the lower levels of European leagues.
But one name no one had on their list was an ex-Monaco and Rangers manager, who had managed in the top divisions of Europe. Why would a manager of such prestigious calibre come to a team like Norwich? Many fans dismissed it as wishful thinking, until, on the 18th of November 2025, Phillipe Clement was announced as the man who would attempt to save the Canaries from the depths of the relegation zone.
The Clement Era had a rocky start, with a 4-1 loss against Birmingham City, but fans chalked that down to the lingering remnants and low fitness standards from Manning’s reign. Things quickly turned around, however, with the Canaries registering their first home win of the season in a 3-1 win against QPR. It was just a league win, but the streets of Norwich celebrated as if they had won the FA Cup. There was something that the fans had been deprived of since the season started – hope.
The flood gates opened, with new additions Ali Ahmed, Mohammed Toure, and Paris Maghoma slotting into the side perfectly and putting goal contributions on the board almost instantly. 2-1 win against Southampton, 2-1 win against Wrexham, 5-0 win against West Bromwich. It was clear as day – Big Phil had saved the Canaries, who at one point seemed a shoo-in for relegation. With a 2-1 win against league leaders Coventry, Norwich lifted themselves out of the relegation zone for the first time since October and have not looked back.
Since taking control, Clement is averaging 1.8 points per game – 1.2 higher than Manning and the highest since Daniel Farke, who took the Canaries to the Prem. Touted already as the best NCFC manager of recent times, turning a squad with an injury list 14 names long and destined for relegation into the best team in the league on form, sitting in 10th at the time of writing – a position that seemed unbelievable a few months ago.
With playoffs being mathematically possible, but very unlikely, many Norwich City fans will just be content with staying up, let alone the projected top-half finish. The turn-around of this squad has been miraculous: with injuries plaguing the club, star players leaving, and a manager who seemed destined to relegate them, they overcame it. There’s now a man whose name echoes around the streets of Norwich, as the saviour of the Canaries – Phillipe Clement.
