Daniel Farke: "We were unbelievably in the spotlight worldwide, we were the first team to beat Manchester City for something like 20 games, with a special brand of football; Watch Man City vs Norwich live on Sky Sports Pick and Sky One on Sunday; Kick-off 4pm
Thursday 30 July 2020 14:00, UK
Ahead of their Premier League swansong at Manchester City on Sunday, Norwich boss Daniel Farke spoke to Sky Sports about the last time the two sides met...
In a Premier League season like no other, the sight of Teemu Pukki and Emi Buendia running Nicolas Otamendi and John Stones ragged in the Canaries' 3-2 win over champions Manchester City at Carrow Road in September still manages to stay high in the memory banks.
"This is not just a result that will reverberate around the Premier League, but the whole of Europe," said Jamie Carragher on Sky Sports after full-time. Norwich, who had already won many admirers for the manner in which they had lifted the previous season's Championship title, had laid down a marker. Manchester City, looking for a third straight Premier League trophy, were already five points off leaders Liverpool - with as many games gone.
Ultimately, the match would prove far more prophetic for Pep Guardiola's side, who could yet still endure their joint-worst Premier League season under his leadership, than Norwich, who dropped into the relegation zone three games later and have never left.
Now unseated as Premier League champions, City will get a chance to gain their revenge over the Canaries at the Etihad Stadium live on Sky One from 3pm on Sunday; kick-off at 4pm.
Looking back on a famous win under the lights at Carrow Road, Farke tells Sky Sports: "After that game, we were unbelievably in the spotlight worldwide, we were the first team to beat Manchester City for something like 20 games, with a special brand of football.
"In the showed we are able to attack the game and of course in a match like that you also need a bit of luck. But in general, we really deserved to win the game."
While some Norwich fans have been back to watch the match highlights more than a couple of times in the 10 months since, it was, in many ways, another welcome three points for the boss - but not a result to fill him with false hope.
"It was important to represent the club in the best possible way, but if I'm honest, I'm not addicted to concentrating on one great performance," he adds. "It was one of our highlights in the season, but I'm also pleased with beating Bournemouth 1-0, a solid win over Leicester and going and winning at Tottenham in the FA Cup after 120 minutes, and some other really good performances where we didn't win the game.
"It was just the fifth game. The table is not important then. It's important after 30 games or something, we were not overexcited and thinking okay, we can compete, we have beaten Manchester City, we knew everything had to come together.
"Sadly many odds have been against us during the season. An unbelievable injury crisis, I would also say where we've lost many goals by one goal, some unlucky VAR decisions, and the lockdown was not good for us.
"We had the momentum on our side, we beat Leicester and Bournemouth before the lockdown and the result away at Tottenham. Of course we were happy with that win, our supporters were dreaming and perhaps the young lads were dreaming a bit too.
"If I'm honest, I was fully aware it could be a long season for us, we have to stick together to the end and we have to accept that we did not have a right to stay in the league."
Farke equated the Canaries' hopes of Premier League survival to climbing Mount Everest earlier in the season. That has since proven a task too steep, but it's tough to think of a mountain big enough to fit the analogy to represent the chances of completing a historic double over City - especially without Buendia this time, following his red card against Burnley last weekend.
"It's unbelievably difficult to do it twice in one season, I don't think anyone has won twice in one season over Pep Guardiola at Man City, Bayern Munich or Barcelona," the typically objective manager told his pre-match press conference ahead of Sunday's league climax.
"In order to get a point or three, we need Man City to be off as well as us playing well. Even if they use 95 per cent of their level most teams won't have a chance.
"Many teams have been thrashed by Man City in recent weeks, but they lost to Arsenal so we are aware of what we face."
Norwich's difficult season on the points front is one Farke hoped he could avoid after already beating the odds to lead them to promotion in 2018/19.
But that has not stopped the 43-year-old looking at the positives, with the club's longer-term vision - especially further investment in their training and academy facilities - a mark of success for a team which only a few years ago was forced to sell their best players in order to make ends meet.
"Of course, we are disappointed with the outcome of the season," says Farke when asked for his assessment of the campaign.
"We would have liked to stay in the Premier League next season, the best league in the world, but we have to go back to the toughest league in the world, the Championship, and of course we are disappointed with the outcome.
"It doesn't take anything away for the mid and long-term future, it was an unbelievable season for this club. For that, we also take the positives, although for the moment, we are a bit disappointed."
