Norwich City legend Iwan Roberts believes the Canaries appointed Johannes Hoff Thorup due to his strong experience in developing academy players. Following the departure of David Wagner, Norwich's hierarchy selected Thorup as their new manager to leverage his expertise in nurturing young talent.
Thorup, who previously managed Nordsjaelland, earned acclaim for his ability to integrate young players into the first team while facilitating their growth. This approach resonates well with Norwich's current academy success, as evidenced by last weekend’s impressive 4-1 victory over Watford, where six players in the starting eleven were aged 23 or under.
Roberts highlighted this youthful presence in his Pink Un column, stating, “Six of the players who started against Watford were 23 or under. I never played in a team with that many, but when Johannes came in, his background was working with and developing youngsters and bringing them into the first team at Nordsjaelland. That was one of the big reasons why he was given the opportunity with the Academy here doing so well and producing a lot of local talent.”
Currently, Norwich City sit in eleventh place in the league table, just three points adrift of the playoff spots, demonstrating a competitive start to the 2024/2025 season under Thorup’s management.