Norwich City: David Wagner has dangerous option he did not v Leeds United at Carrow Road last time: View | OneFootball

A lot of things are different between now and the last time Leeds United visited Carrow Road back in October.

If you had told Norwich City fans that they would be in the play-off picture after the 3-2 defeat that day, not many would have believed you, with the fortunes of the club in the midst of a nosedive.

The Norfolk side were in free fall in the early months of the season, with a run of just two wins in eleven Championship matches seeing them drop into the nether regions of the table, before a 2024 resurgence saw them bounce back with gusto.

Part of that recent revival has been down to the form of Josh Sargent, and the American will be looking to make up for lost time after missing out on the hosting of Daniel Farke’s side earlier in the season.

Josh Sargent can be the difference maker in Norwich City’s Championship promotion push

Sargent started the season in red-hot form, with three goals in his first four league matches before an ankle injury sustained in a 4-0 victory against Huddersfield Town saw him miss out on the next four months of the campaign.

His absence coincided with David Wagner’s side’s wretched run of form, which saw them struggling for confidence, points and goals and left the German’s job prospects hanging by a thread.

Within that torrid stretch former City boss Daniel Farke brought his Leeds side to town, and added to the hosts’ problems with a second-half blitz that saw them return to Yorkshire with all three points.

Things had started well enough for the East Anglians, with Shane Duffy putting them ahead after four minutes, before Gabriel Sara doubled the advantage before the break, leaving those of a green and yellow persuasion thinking they had turned a corner after their poor spell.

But United turned it up a gear in the second stanza, with the visitors’ pressure eventually ending up with Duffy putting through his own net, before two trademark Crysencio Summerville curled efforts turned the game on its head.

You can’t help but think that things could have been so different if Wagner had a player like Sargent to rely on in that match, with the USA international proving himself to be one of the most clinical strikers in the division since his return to action.

Only Leicester City’s Jamie Vardy can top the frontman’s 0.78 goals per 90 this season in the second tier, with 13 goals in 22 appearances after his return from injury the catalyst for the Canaries’ rise up the table in 2024.

Only Leeds and rivals Ipswich Town can boast a better points return in 2024 than City, and the fact that they are unbeaten on their own patch since November will only add to their confidence heading into the play-off first leg on Sunday.

Sargent returned to the fold with a point to prove post-Christmas, with an equaliser against Southampton on New Year’s Day followed up with a run of ten goals in 12 games between January and Good Friday.

Sargent will look to capitalise on Leeds United defensive woes in Championship play-off clash

It isn’t just on Norwich’s side that matters have changed since that October meeting, with Leeds looking a shadow of their former selves in recent weeks as their chances of automatic promotion slipped through their fingers.

Farke’s side looked like they had matters in hand heading into the final month of the season, before four defeats in their final six matches saw them slump into the play-offs in the most heartbreaking of fashions.

The Yorkshire side have been shipping goals at an alarming rate in the last few weeks, with eleven breaches of their rearguard in their last four matches, with the nadir being a 4-0 defeat to Queens Park Rangers in their penultimate match of the season.

Defeats to Coventry City, Blackburn Rovers and Southampton have all damaged their confidence in the final stretch of the campaign, and Farke [pictured above] knows he needs to turn those fortunes around if they are to progress to the end-of-season showdown at Wembley at the end of the month.

Norwich will undoubtedly have other ideas heading into Sunday’s clash, and in Sargent they have a man who can change a game in an instant, and will make the most of any lapses at the back by the visitors.

With two attacking forces that boast plenty of firepower, the two-legged affair will boil down to who takes their chances when they arrive, and with the American leading the line, the Canaries will always fancy their chances of breaching the Leeds backline.