Norwich City Vs Sheffield Wednesday ends 2-0 as Maghoma makes first Championship start
norwich city vs sheffield wednesday finished 2-0 at Carrow Road on 25/02/26, a midweek Championship fixture in which substitute Mathias Kvistgaarden and Paris Maghoma scored in the first half and Philippe Clement’s changes helped secure three points against an already relegated Sheffield Wednesday side.
Match result and key moments
Norwich beat Sheffield Wednesday 2-0 at Carrow Road. Mathias Kvistgaarden and Paris Maghoma found the net in the first half. Kvistgaarden had come on to replace Mohamed Toure, who limped off after seven minutes.
Norwich City Vs Sheffield Wednesday: team news and starting XIs
Paris Maghoma made his first Championship start for Norwich City. Philippe Clement made a number of changes with no Jose Cordoba in the matchday squad after the Belgian indicated on Monday there were some fresh fitness concerns in the camp; the manager described the absence as precautionary and said he would update post-game.
Norwich City (starting XI): Kovacevic; Stacey, McConville, Darling, Fisher; McLean ©, Wright; Gibbs, Maghoma, Ahmed; Toure. (Subs): Grimshaw, Medic, Chrisene, Field, Springett, Marcondes, Slimane, Mundle-Smith, Kvistgaarden.
Sheffield Weds (starting XI); Dieng, Palmer (C), Iorfa, Ingelsson, Lowe, McNeill, Ndala, Hekey, McGhee, Thornton, Adaramola. (Subs): Stretch, Fusire, Yates, Shipston, Johnson, Grainger, Emery, Moses, Maltby.
Injury picture and squad updates
Harry Darling replaced the Panamanian international Jose Cordoba in the line-up, with Jack Stacey included and Kellen Fisher switching to the opposite flank. Ben Chrisene was named on the bench. Jacob Wright started alongside captain Kenny McLean, with Sam Field among the substitutes. Liam Gibbs started for the second consecutive game, with Maghoma in the number 10 role and Ali Ahmed on the left behind Mohamed Toure.
Amankwah Forson has returned to full training in the past 10 days but Clement indicated he will take a cautious approach to re-integrating the attacking midfielder. Oscar Schwartau was ruled out for 'a number of weeks' prior to last weekend's Birmingham defeat with the hamstring injury suffered in the 3-1 FA Cup win against West Brom. Pelle Mattsson is back in light training and targeting a return next month from his ankle injury. Matej Jurasek is set to be out for 'seven to eight weeks' with a foot injury.
Jovon Makama (foot) and Papa Amadou Diallo (quad) are set to miss most of the run in. Manchester United loanee Harry Amass (hamstring) has returned to his parent club to continue his rehab but the club have not terminated the loan in the hope he can still feature at the back-end of the season. Gabe Forsyth is still following a rehab plan as he bids to make a competitive return since injuring his knee in November 2024. Jeffery Schlupp and Shane Duffy (hamstring) remain longer term absentees. Mirko Topic and Ante Crnac are out for the season with ACL knee injuries.
Form, standings and betting context
Already relegated Sheffield Wednesday travelled to Carrow Road in midweek. Hosts Norwich were 12 points off the play-offs and six above the relegation zone; Philippe Clement’s arrival saw them motor clear of the drop and they had won eight of 11 games since the turn of the year (3L), though a top-six finish was described as probably out of the question. The Canaries had won four of their last five at home, scoring 13 times across that sample, and were 1/6 to win this game with Sky Bet and odds-on to score three or more goals.
In the wider Championship context, Anis Ben Slimane was highlighted as having set up five goals in 12 matches this season, including two in a half-hour cameo against West Brom in the FA Cup, and he used to play for Sheffield United. Sheffield United’s Steel City derby win on Sunday sent their rivals down and kept the Blades' faint play-off hopes alive; Chris Wilder’s side were six points off sixth with 13 games to go. Leaders Coventry had beaten Middlesbrough and West Brom in their last two games to move three points clear at the top, while Frank Lampard’s team had won one of their last nine away.
Recommended betting notes in the pre-match coverage included a 4/1 quote for Anis Ben Slimane to record 1+ assists, 33/40 on Sheffield United +0. 0 Asian handicap, and 6/1 for Tatsuhiro Sakamoto to be carded. Tatsuhiro Sakamoto had picked up four cards that season, three of which came in his last three Championship appearances. Referee John Busby had handed out 53 yellow cards and 3 reds in 13 second-tier appearances that term. For support with gambling concerns, call the National Gambling Helpline / GamCare on 0808 8020 133.
Canary Call watchalong and fan reaction
A Canary Call watchalong took place for the Norwich City v Sheffield Wednesday fixture on 25/02/26, with former Norwich striker Iwan Roberts and Rob Butler taking calls and fan thoughts on the game. Listeners were invited to phone 0800 3897 321 or use the hashtag #canarycall to join the discussion after full time.
The next confirmed events are the manager’s planned post-game update and the club’s ongoing recovery and fitness assessments as they prepare for the next fixture on the schedule.
