06 March 2021

Daniel Farke says “plenty of work to be done” as Norwich move 10 clear at top

06 March 2021

Norwich manager Daniel Farke saluted his players and also sounded a note of caution after they beat Luton 3-0 at Carrow Road to maintain a 10-point lead at the top of the Championship.

Two goals from top scorer Teemu Pukki, which took his tally for the season to 20, and one from Todd Cantwell made it seven straight wins for Farke’s side and moved them another step closer to an immediate return to the Premier League.

But Farke is taking nothing for granted, even though his side have plenty of breathing space with just 11 matches left.

He said: “First of all I must congratulate my players for another excellent performance – it was probably even better than the one against Brentford on Wednesday.

“They put in a lot of energy, both physically and mentally, into that game but they were still able to produce again just three days later. That is what winners do.

“They want it so much and showed it – all the players, whether they played for 90 minutes or one minute, were committed and focused and it was another good win.

“It was an excellent performance, three more points and another clean sheet so I have to be pleased.

“It has taken us on to 76 points but we still need another two wins to get past 80 and five wins to get past 90 so there is still plenty of work to be done.

“We can enjoy this for a few days but then we need to look forward. It is a case of staying fully concentrated on every game.”

Pukki produced an emphatic finish into the top corner to open the scoring after 12 minutes and added a second from close range just before half-time after an Emi Buendia cross had taken a fortunate deflection.

Cantwell completed the scoring after 73 minutes with a low shot from the edge of the box, with Norwich’s only moment of real concern coming early on when James Collins hit the post.

Luton boss Nathan Jones said: “When you are playing a side like Norwich you have to make the most of your opportunities and we didn’t do that.

“But we were up against a very good side, the best side in the league.

“At this level Norwich are Manchester City – they are difficult to score against and they score plenty themselves so it was always going to be tough for us.

“To be honest we are not at their level – that’s not being negative, just realistic.

“The players put in a shift, they stuck at it and didn’t throw in the towel, but I certainly can’t complain about the result.”

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