Norwich City vs Rotherham United; Sky Bet Championship
Norwich City vs Rotherham United. Sky Bet Championship.
Carrow Road.
Norwich City 1-0 Rotherham: Teemu Pukki fires Canaries seven points clear
Report and highlights from the Sky Bet Championship clash between Norwich City and Rotherham at Carrow Road as Teemu Pukki's goal in the first half moved Daniel Farke's Canaries seven points clear at the top of the table.
Saturday 20 February 2021 18:35, UK
Norwich recorded a hard-fought 1-0 win over Rotherham to move seven points clear at the top of the Championship table.
A well-taken first-half goal from top-scorer Teemu Pukki was enough to settle an entertaining encounter and a perfect afternoon for the leaders was completed by defeats for closest challengers Brentford and Swansea.
It was a well-deserved victory for Daniel Farke's side but the visitors gave a good account of themselves and had chances to come away from Carrow Road with something to show for their efforts.
The game between the leaders and the relegation battlers got off to a lively start, with Norwich carving out two excellent opportunities and Rotherham having a goal mysteriously ruled out.
Just seven minutes had elapsed when Emi Buendia played Pukki in only for the Finnish frontman to fire straight at Viktor Johansson while Mario Vrancic shot wastefully wide after being set up by Pukki in the next home attack.
Defender Clark Robertson then headed home a corner for the Millers but referee Tony Harrington had already whistled for what he deemed to be a foul on keeper Tim Krul, with the offence far from clear-cut.
That was a rare scare for Norwich, however, and their incessant pressure was rewarded in the 17th minute as Pukki stroked home his 15th goal of the season.
The Canaries' top scorer found himself in the clear after Todd Cantwell had stepped over Buendia's through ball and produced a cool finish to give his side a deserved lead.
It should really have been 2-0 a minute later when a slip from Michael Ihiekwe let in Cantwell but the young midfielder fluffed his lines under pressure, screwing the ball well wide.
Another big chance for the hosts arrived in the 38th minute and it took a brilliant goal-line clearance from Robertson to deny Buendia after Vrancic had cut the ball back into the Argentine's path.
Rotherham came within a whisker of getting back on level terms two minutes after the restart when Ben Wiles made a superb connection with a partially-cleared corner, his rising drive clipping the top of the crossbar with Krul well beaten.
Cantwell then shot wide from the edge of the box after a brilliant pick-out from Buendia as a dominant Norwich outfit went looking for a second.
It nearly arrived in the 71st minute after the visitors had dozed off at a quick free-kick but Johansson produced a strong hand to deny Pukki.
A great block from Max Aarons then denied Matt Crooks as a rare Rotherham attack almost bore fruit.
It had been a spirited effort from the South Yorkshire side but Norwich were able to see out the game with few alarms.
What the managers said...
Norwich's Daniel Farke: "To be honest other results are not important to us, it is about us staying switched on in each and every game because nothing is guaranteed in this league. I am not interested in the table at the moment, just the points, and I am very happy to have 64 now.
"But if we stop now we would not even have enough points to get in the play-offs so we must keep up the momentum. If we can get up to 80 and make sure of the play-offs then we can start thinking of other things. We are just focusing on our third game in six days at Birmingham on Tuesday which will be another tough one."
Rotherham's Paul Warne: "I would be lying if I said the best team hadn't won but I was pleased with the way the lads played. Our plan was to try and stop them playing out from the back and having too much possession but in the first half I didn't think we were brave enough with our press at times. We gifted them a goal and if I am being honest it could have been more than 1-0 at half-time.
"I thought we were a lot better in the second half. We didn't come here to park the bus, we created some chances, but in the end I don't think we did enough to come away with anything. Most managers seem to say Norwich are the best team in this division and I would echo that. There is still a long way to go but I would be amazed if they didn't go straight up - although crazier things have happened."
