Reading Defeat Means Only a Huge Slice of Luck Can Save the Canaries Now

Ahead of Monday night's game Norwich City had the chance to keep the destiny of their future in their own hands. Unfortunately, the game finished in 2-0 win for Reading. The end result is even a win against Charlton on Sunday was still likely relegate Norwich. Only if Plymouth beat Barnsley and Norwich also win will the Canaries survive.

It's a big ask; especially when you consider Plymouth have nothing to play for. If Norwich is relegated, they only have themselves to blame and a massive rebuilding job will need to begin. Norwich needs to ensure they follow the example left by Leicester City as closely as possible. Leicester of course, has just won the league one championship.

It won't be easy for Norwich to follow suit. For one thing, they lack the same level of the financial backing. However, there is still an outside chance of an investor coming in. I would think the chances of that are relatively slim. Therefore, I write this piece with the assumption that Delia will still be in charge.

It's fairly clear that player sales are inevitable. Personally, I believe three players will definitely leave. These are Lee Croft, David Marshall and Sammy Clingan. Croft will leave on a free transfer, because he is out of contract. That isn't all bad news, because it will at least free up some wages. I would hope Norwich could recoup, at least £1 million for Marshall. And the fee for Sammy could be anywhere between £1 million and £3 million.

There will be other departures as well, with Pattison, and Fotheringham been the most notable. The out-of-favour Jamie Cureton may also seek pastures new. But I would hope the majority of the rest of the squad will stay. Hopefully, at least £2 million will be generated by player sales. Now, I hope the board will agree that the majority of that money has to be reinvested into the squad.

New players will have to come in, but I don't think our squad is going to be as depleted as some people might think. The major holes will be on the right wing, central midfield and up front. Firstly, we should look at what we have got. For instance Korey Smith could be a contender to fill the void left by Sammy Clingan.

We need to make sure there are regular goals in this team. With that in mind, we need to keep all the forwards we have. That means Jamie Cureton, Cody McDonald, Carl Cort, Chris Martin and Luke Daley. It is so important to have goalscorers in any league. Therefore, I think we are going to have to spend some money on a new striker. But my hot tip is for Cody McDonald to come into his own next season.

Next week, I hope to write an article about a miracle survival. But I suspect I won't be. Therefore, I hope we can make the best of a bad situation. I believe this great club can rise again, but we must ensure no more mistakes are made and fresh investment is found soon. It is about time Norwich City starts moving forwards and stops moving backwards.