Narcis Pelach issues emotional Norwich City message after Stoke City switch | OneFootball

Norwich City first-team coach Narcis Pelach has left the club to become the new head coach of Stoke City.

Narcis Pelach has issued an emotional farewell message to Norwich City after leaving the club to become the new head coach of Stoke City.

Pelach had spent the past year as a first-team coach at Carrow Road after making the move from Huddersfield Town to join David Wagner's backroom staff last summer.

The 36-year-old played an important role as Norwich reached the Championship play-offs last season, where they were beaten by Leeds United in the semi-finals, and after Wagner's sacking in May, he remained at the club to work with new head coach Johannes Hoff Thorup.

However, Pelach has now departed to take up his first management role in English football at the bet365 Stadium, where he will replace Steven Schumacher, who was surprisingly sacked on Monday after just five games of the season.

Canaries goalkeeping coach Paul Clements and performance analyst Harrison Glew will join Pelach at Stoke, and the Spaniard will take charge of the Potters for the first time against Hull City on Friday night.

Narcis Pelach's Norwich City farewell message

After his appointment as Stoke head coach was confirmed, Pelach took to social media to send a goodbye message to Norwich, reflecting on his time at Carrow Road and thanking the club and fans for ther support.

"Today, my time at a wonderful club has come to an end," Pelach wrote on X.

"A club full of good, hard working and kind people.

"It has been a pleasure to share this time and I am grateful for having been here, for having met so many good people and also for having experienced another playoff.

"I thank everyone for the warmth received and for the way I have been treated.

"I wish you all the best, good luck and above all, thank you very much."

Opening up on his decision to join the Potters, Pelach admitted that he has had offers to manage other clubs in England and abroad, but he said the opportunity to take over at the bet365 Stadium was too good to turn down.

"I feel a great excitement and sense of responsibility to Stoke City and can’t thank John Coates and Jon Walters enough for giving me this opportunity," Pelach told the club's official website.

"I’ve had other chances to become a Head Coach in England and in other countries. But once I saw in their eyes how passionate they are about the Club and how much they want to embrace a different identity and philosophy, I could not refuse and, once I’m in, I’m all in.

"I know the league, I know the opposition and I already know about our players. The level of the squad is good. I believe in them and I will create a playing style that suits their qualities.

"The methodology will be different, the training will be intense every day, sometimes it won’t be comfortable and players and coaches will be challenged a lot.

"But, if we get it right and do something together that owners, players, supporters and staff emotionally believe in, there are no limits to what we can achieve."

Like Norwich, it has been an inconsistent start to the season for Stoke, and there are currently just two places separating Pelach's new club and his former employers in the Championship table.

Norwich City may have Narcis Pelach regret after Stoke City move

Pelach is an intriguing appointment for Stoke, and while there is no doubt it is a big gamble, he could prove to be an exciting choice.

It is clear that Pelach is an incredibly highly-rated coach, and he will have gained valuable experience working under the likes of Wagner, Carlos Corberan and Neil Warnock during his time at Norwich and Huddersfield.

If Pelach is successful at the bet365 Stadium, the Canaries could regret not giving him an opportunity to take the top job at Carrow Road this summer after Wagner's departure, particularly given Thorup's early struggles.

Thorup has won just two of his first seven games in charge in all competitions, and although he has had to contend with disruptive transfer speculation for much of his reign so far, Norwich may be left to wonder if Pelach was a better option.