Chris Sutton sends Ipswich Town, Southampton warning to Norwich City | OneFootball

The Canaries have ambitions to get back to the top flight.

Chris Sutton has sent an Ipswich Town and Southampton warning to Norwich City amid their push to try and return to the Premier League.

Unless Johannes Hoff Thorup leads Norwich to promotion in his first season in charge, in which he has had to deal with a number of frustrations and setbacks, it will have been five seasons since City were last in the top flight.

It feels unlikely that they will go up this season. Injuries to key players and a number of suspensions have by no means helped their cause, but you can never rule them out when they have a player like Borja Sainz who is so on fire.

The gap between the Premier League's established sides and those in the Championship is continually growing. Last season, all three promoted teams got relegated, and there's a chance that it may happen again this season.

Even if Norwich do ascend the mountain, there's a chance that they could be kicked back down it before they have time to take in the view.

Chris Sutton sends Ipswich & Southampton message to Norwich

Of course promotion is the goal for Norwich; it is for any team in and around the top half of the Championship. If they do achieve their goals, they have to go about their return in a certain way, according to Sutton, a former Canary, who believes that City should look at their rivals, the Tractor Boys, and the Saints as examples to maybe avoid.

The striker turned presenter does believe in the setup at Carrow Road now, with the Dane in charge of the first-team, and the feeling around the place from the supporters is much more positive.

He said in his Pink Un column: "It does feel to me like there is patience among the support. It doesn't feel like previous seasons where there has been pent-up anger and aggression towards either the team or the people in leadership positions. That's really important. In the main, the fans see that this is a club starting on a journey.

"That has to carry on as the case. Of course, that requires enough short-term results, but the new model is one that people can attach to, and there is an understanding about where the club is at financially. It isn't going to be about lavish spending, but developing from within, nurturing players and selling them on while trying to improve.

"That's going to be really difficult. The gap is increasing every season - Ipswich have spent £100m and are making a fist of it, but only have two wins. Norwich had 25 percent possession against Southampton in January, and there was a real gulf - look at how they've started the season. Even Leicester are struggling, and the three newly promoted clubs were relegated last year."

Sutton thinks that Brentford are the best example of what to do when you win promotion to the Premier League. They have now been in the top flight for four seasons after going up via the play-offs in 2021.

They have consolidated their position, got a few years of Premier League money under their belt, and are now starting to slowly ascend the table.

"Brentford is the marker for Norwich," claimed Sutton. "They came up at the same time and represent a blueprint for how they can be successful, albeit they have spent well.

"They had to build for a significant period of time in the Championship under Thomas Frank before getting to the Premier League. They are now stable in the top flight and aren't a side you ever really consider could go down.

"Norwich now need to build and recruit in a similar way. With Mark Attanasio, they have a bit more financial muscle behind them, but it won't be excessive. It is a process that should, in the long term, help them be more competitive in the Premier League.

"That can take years. Norwich have the right coach and people in place to take them on that journey. The speed that they travel down that road will come down to the quality of their recruitment."

There is a model of how to stay in the Premier League, it's just a hard one to follow

There are never any guarantees that when you get promoted you will be able to hang in the division above. Look at Burnley last season. They had just ripped up the Championship and then ended up being shredded themselves when they arrived at the big boys' table.

The ones who have done it successfully are the aforementioned Bees, Brighton & Hove Albion, Fulham - you could even chuck Aston Villa into that mix, even though they had a lot of luck in staying up.

Those first four in particular slowly built on a solid foundation and are now starting to make waves. It's not just about going and revolutionising your team straight off the bat; it can take time to become part of the foundations.

It's by no means easy to do, but it should certainly be the blueprint that Norwich try to follow.