Dowell’s double makes it title party time for Farke YELLOW
DANIEL FARKE made sure his Norwich stars partied hard before preparing for another crack at the Premier League.
The Canaries will return as champions after Reading were blown away by Kieran Dowell’s double and goals from Xavi Quintilla and Teemu Pukki.
That added up to a clubrecord 96 points with a game to go and fans are hopeful it will be second-time lucky in the top flight for the German and his players.
Farke, who led them up as champs in 2019, thinks so too – but made sure his squad lived in the moment first. He said: “We have the feeling we are better prepared as a club and will give it a real go.
“If we are better than two years ago we will see but now we are thinking only of celebrations.
“I don’t want to be scared of Liverpool and Manchester City and the other top sides. We just want to enjoy ourselves.”
Norwich made a sloppy start and were caught out by a free-kick to the back post in the 12th minute when Josh Laurent headed home his fourth goal of the season.
Royals keeper Rafael Cabral denied Emi Buendia and Pukki, who saw a shot cleared off the line by Tom Holmes shortly afterwards.
However, Holmes was at fault for Dowell’s leveller on the half-hour mark. The
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We will give it a real go. I don’t want to be scared of Liverpool and Man City, and the other top sides. We just want to enjoy ourselves
centre-back got to Todd Cantwell’s teasing delivery before Pukki but sold his keeper short with a back-pass.
Pukki’s pressure forced Cabral to clear straight to Dowell, who accepted the gift.
Reading should have been back ahead in first-half stoppage-time.
Ovie Ojaria gave Michael Olise a clear sight of goal on the right of the box but the teenager sliced wide.
Cabral was beaten again by Dowell in the 64th minute. Cantwell’s dinked pass found the ex-Everton man on the left of the box and, although the angle was tight, his low shot squeezed between the keeper and the far post.
Quintilla’s superb free-kick after Cantwell had been felled just outside the box gave Cabral no chance.
And there was just enough time for Norwich to prosper from another poor Holmes back pass. Pukki beat Cabral to it and evaded Lewis Gibson to find the net for his 26th goal of a stellar season.
One win in the last 10 had already cost Reading a play-off chance but manager Veljko Paunovic was confident the Royals could replicate Norwich’s success next season.
He said: “That is our desire, that’s our goal and that’s the way we want to go.
“To reach this level many things have to happen and improvement has to happen, but that’s something we are already working on and are aware of.” NORWICH CITY: Krul 6; Aarons 7 (Mumba 89), Hanley 7, Omobamidele 7, Quintilla 7 (Hugill 87); Skipp 7, McLean 7; Buendia 7 (Tettey 82), Dowell 7 (Vrancic 83), Cantwell 7 (Hernandez 86);
Pukki 7.
Unused subs: Nyland, Placheta, Stiepermann, Sorensen. READING: Cabral 8; Yiadom 7, Holmes 5, Gibson 6, Richards 6; Laurent 7, Olise 6 (Esteves 68, 5); Tetek 6 (Semedo 68, 5), Swift 5 (Meite 62, 6), Ejaria 7; Joao 5 (Camara 83).
Unused subs: Southwood, Baldock, Aluko, Puscas, Dorsett.
MAN OF THE MATCH: Rafael Cabral. The Reading keeper prevented an even bigger Canaries goal avalanche.