Boss Kieran McKenna expects Saturday’s opponents Stoke City - the Blues’ first at Portman Road in the Championship for four years - to be a threat in the division this season, manager Alex Neil having rebuilt his squad over the summer.
Town are set to be watched by a close-to-capacity crowd of 29,000 - only a handful of seats remain unsold - on their home return to the Championship having got their campaign up and running with Sunday’s 2-1 win at Sunderland and then defeated Bristol Rovers 2-0 at home in the Carabao Cup.
The Blues go into Saturday’s match having taken their all-competitions unbeaten run to 19 matches, their most recent loss the last-gasp 2-1 FA Cup replay defeat to now-Premier League Burnley at Turf Moor in February. If Town are undefeated tomorrow, they will equal a club record established in the 1980/81 season.
In the league, Town have now gone 20 matches without defeat, going back to January, the second-longest run in the club’s history and three off the record 23 achieved in 1979/80.
The Blues are also unbeaten in 20 games at home in all competitions, stretching back to Lincoln’s smash-and-grab 1-0 win in October.
The last time the Blues were at Portman Road for a league game was in April when they walloped Exeter City 6-0 to confirm promotion back to the Championship having been relegated in 2018/19, an afternoon which will live long in the memory.
"We are really looking forward to it - it is a big day for the football club,” McKenna said. "It has been too long since we have been back at this level.
"It has been a long road back to this point and even the Exeter game feels like a long time ago.
"I’m sure the supporters, first and foremost, and everyone at the club, from players to staff, can’t wait to get back to Portman Road and feel the atmosphere of a full stadium.
"It is a really good game ahead, a tough opponent, a big Championship challenge but we arrive there with a lot of optimism and belief that we can go on and make an impression. We will be ready for a big challenge ahead.”
Stoke, who finished 16th last season, began their campaign with a 4-1 home victory over Rotherham United last week then beat West Brom 2-1 at the bet365 Stadium in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday, manager Alex Neil having made 11 signings this summer.
"I think they are a really strong side,” McKenna said. "I’m sure a lot of people will have them down to do well this season because Alex has been there now for a decent amount of time and been able to manipulate the squad how he wants to.
"Players leave and players come and he has brought in some really good players. They’ve added to the group well with Championship experience and quality in midfield and pace and power and a goal threat up front, and more strong, physical defenders as well.
"They are a team with a lot of physicality, a lot of intensity, a lot of aggression – we are going to have to stand up to that. And then we are going to have to try and impose our game on them as well, which is going to be really tough but it is a challenge we are looking forward to.”
He added: "They’re a really strong side, no doubt about it. I think they’ll be strong this year.
"They’ve strengthened all over the pitch, they’ve got a good manager and they’re going to be a threat this year. They showed that in pre-season, they showed that in the first game against Rotherham.
"They’re a really physically imposing, aggressive team with good quality that can score goals from a lot of different positions.
"They’re going to be a threat to everyone, us included, but at the same time, we will and have look at where we think we can impose ourselves in the game and where we’ll try and hurt them.
"While paying them respect, we’ll focus on ourselves and how we go an implement our game plan and compete in the match as best we can and do everything we can to give the fans, first of all, a performance that they can be proud of and with that you give yourself a chance to get a result.”
With the Blues playing their third game in six days, McKenna is likely to revert to the starting XI which began the game against Sunderland.
Vaclav Hladky will be in goal with Janoi Donacien again likely to be at right-back with former Stoke loan man Harry Clarke’s achilles injury continuing to be managed.
Leif Davis will be at left-back with Luke Woolfenden and Cameron Burgess the centre-halves.
In midfield, skipper Sam Morsy will be joined by Massimo Luongo with Wes Burns wide on the right, Conor Chaplin in the centre and Nathan Broadhead to the left behind striker George Hirst.
Stoke's 11 additions have been recruited from both the domestic and international markets.
Centre forward Ryan Mmaee has come in from Ferencvaros in Hungary, winger Andre Vidigal from Maritimo in Portugal, left-back Enda Stevens from Sheffield United, centre-half Michael Rose from Coventry and centre forward Wesley from Aston Villa.
Dutch right-back Ki-Jana Hoever has returned for a second loan from Wolves, centre-back Luke McNally, a player in whom Town showed interest, has joined on loan from Burnley, Irish international keeper Mark McNally has signed from Bournemouth, also on loan, and winger Chiquinho is another loan signing from Wolves.
Midfielders Ben Pearson and Daniel Johnson have joined on a permanent basis from Bournemouth and Preston respectively having previously worked with manager Neil during his time in charge of the Lilywhites.
On Thursday, Scotland international striker Jacob Brown left Stoke to join Premier League new boys Luton. You can read more on the Potters' squad in a TWTD Blog.
Forwards Tyrese Campbell, who picked up a thigh problem in training last week, and Emre Tezgel, who suffered a knock in pre-season, remain sidelined for the Potters, along with midfielder and former skipper Lewis Baker, who is recovering from knee surgery.
Former Newcastle and Crystal Palace frontman Dwight Gayle returned after a calf injury to create the second goal in Tuesday’s victory over the Baggies having come on for the last half hour.
Stoke boss Neil is anticipating a welcome from the Town support having been Norwich’s manager between 2015 and 2017.
"It's another tough game,” he said. "The Championship throws up different challenges every week and having been in that position before when you come up with a team, that momentum, that confidence, that togetherness, carries you a long way at the start of the season.
"So we know it's going to be tough. It's their first home league game since they came up, I'd imagine the place will be rocking and me being an ex-Norwich manager as well probably adds a bit of fuel to the fire. It should make for a good atmosphere.
"It’ll be a really good game, they got a great result last week and it’ll be a tough match.”
Historically, results have been close with Stoke having won 29 (25 in the league) games between the sides, Town 28 (26) and 21 (19) having ended in draws.
The teams last met at Portman Road in February 2019 when Will Keane nodded an injury-time equaliser as the Blues and Stoke drew 1-1, James McClean having made the most of a Town defensive mix-up to put the visitors ahead three minutes before half-time.
At the bet365 Stadium in the previous December, a goal in each half from Tom Ince and Joe Allen saw Stoke to a 2-0 victory over the Blues.
Ince’s injury-time goal was harsh on Town after an evenly-balanced first half but Allen sealed the three points for the home side on the hour.
Saturday’s referee is Josh Smith from Bedfordshire, whose only game so far this season was the 2-2 draw between Leeds and Cardiff last Sunday in which he showed three yellow cards.
Smith’s most recent Town match was the 4-4 draw at Charlton in October in which he booked nine players - Morsy, Burns, Christian Walton, Dominic Ball, Tyreece John-Jules and four Addicks - as well as sending off home manager Ben Garner for taking his protests too far following the Blues’ second goal.
Before that, he was in charge of the 4-0 win at Portsmouth in October 2021 in which he cautioned Morsy, George Edmundson and two home players, one of them Marcus Harness.
Prior to that he was the man in the middle for the 2-2 home draw with the MK Dons in August 2021 in which he yellow-carded Woolfenden, Kane Vincent-Young and one visiting player.
His only previous Town match before that was the 2-1 EFL Trophy defeat away at Exeter in January 2020 in which he again booked Woolfenden, as well as Toto Nsiala, Will Keane and one Grecian.
Squad from: Hladky, Slicker, Donacien, Clarke, Ball, Woolfenden, Burgess, Edmundson, Baggott, Davis, Leigh, Morsy (c), Evans, Luongo, Taylor, Humphreys, Burns, Jackson, Chaplin, Broadhead, Harness, Aluko, Edwards, Hutchinson, Hirst, Ladapo.