EFL expert Gab Sutton has provided his reaction to Bolton Wanderers' 4-3 victory over Norwich City at Carrow Road.
Norwich City's underwhelming start to the 2026/27 Championship season was extended when losing 4-3 to newly promoted Bolton Wanderers on Sunday afternoon.
The Canaries took the lead on two separate occasions in the first half through Mohamed Toure and Ruairi McConville, but Steven Schumacher's side responded accordingly and goals from Thierry Gale and Gaizka Larrazabal saw the score level at the break.
Sam Dalby put the visitors in front in the 47th minute, but their one-goal advantage lasted less than 15 minutes, with Jack Stacey emphatically equalising for Philippe Clement's outfit.
It was Bolton's Atsuki Ito who had the final say in the game, and there might not be many better ways to net your first goal for your new club. The Japanese midfielder turned onto his weaker left foot on the edge of the Norwich box, before firing the ball into the bottom-right corner past a powerless Vladan Kovacevic.
The seven-goal thriller between Norwich and Bolton concluded the Championship action before heading into a three-week international break, and EFL expert Gab Sutton has provided his reaction to the Carrow Road clash.
Norwich’s defensive woes
Norwich came into 2026-27 with plenty of confidence, off the back of their top six form in the second half of last season, but the Canaries have so far been held back by chronic inconsistency.
Phillippe Clement had hoped for a big result in Sunday’s hosting of Bolton, which is why he made nine changes for Thursday’s 5-0 loss at Manchester City, but the Belgian’s bravery went unrewarded.
Let us be clear: it’s not as if the Yellows gave up a host of chances, and their defensive performance looks a lot worse because the openings were put away by the visitors, whereas had those isolated moments not been converted they might serve merely as minor notes of caution.
Nonetheless, there does seem to be a gap between defence and midfield, caused by a midfield keen to press and support the attack, and a defence too timid to catch up: there may be issues with Kenny McLean not being at the level of consistency he once was, being picked for leadership but becoming limited in other areas like mobility.
There can be no concerns about Norwich’s attack, and the potential of the combination of Andre Brooks, Oscar Schwartau, Anthony Musaba and Mo Toure to be very dangerous – but defensively, tweaks are required, with 17 goals now conceded in their first eight.
No team with serious promotion aspirations can demonstrate that sort of fragility.
Gale key to Bolton storm
It’s five attacking additions for Bolton this summer, at first-team level, of which four arrived in August (or September), so you could be forgiven for thinking it would take time for this new-look front-line to amalgamate.
So, to produce such an incisive, clinical performance at Norwich on Sunday, and score four goals away from home, can be a source of great encouragement for Steven Schumacher’s side.
And, actually, it’s the players from last season who are making the biggest impact, with left winger Thierry Gale delivering some barnstorming performances; he almost looks more influential at Championship level than he did in League One, because of those counter-attacking possibilities.
Meanwhile, Sam Dalby has built on his heroic impact from the bench in the Play-Off Final win over Stockport, in which he won man-of-the-match as a 62nd-minute substitute, and he, like Gale, has enjoyed life in the Championship with three goals apiece.
The target man is proving a handful for defenders at this level: he probably won’t score 20 goals this season, but he might score 10 and play a respectable part in his team staying up – after four straight defeats, back-to-back wins will certainly aid that cause.
