Norwich City boss Philippe Clement believes the pressure is all on the Blues ahead of what he says is a “must-win” East Anglian derby for the visitors at Carrow Road on Saturday.

While Town, second, are in the box seat to win promotion to the Premier League, the ninth-placed Canaries’ play-off ambitions look all but over, despite a Lazarus-like recovery following the appointment of the Belgian in November.

Clement feels the cash the Blues have spent in order to achieve a quick return to the top flight will put them under pressure.

“He’s [Kieran McKenna] done a really good job already with getting a promotion two years ago and now again, they’re chasing for promotion, and they’re up there,” he said.

“But they also invested to go to the Premier League, to go back fast. That’s also really clear that they spend a lot of money to go up directly.

“That will create also a kind of pressure, I think, on their side because for them it’s really a must-win.

“For sure, every point is important now for them to have direct promotion, it’s a big difference than to go into the play-offs, which is always a kind of a lottery.

“Somebody showed me this week, because I didn’t know myself, in the last 25 games, we are top of the league together with the team we play against this weekend. We have scored three goals less in that period, but conceded also three goals less. So it’s really equal over 25 games. That’s not luck.

“You can have four or five games in a row, some luck, but if you do it consistently, 25 games, then you’re growing towards the level where we want to be. It’s a crazy turnaround with a squad coming out of nine points from the first 15 games.

“I’m really proud of where the players are, also, with all the circumstances, with the injuries and everything.

“The next challenge, and it’s a big one because we know how much we can give to our fans, and we want all the players and staff to give a lot back, because the fans have given us also a lot at home, and also in these away games.”

Quizzed on Marcelino Nunez’s first return to Carrow Road following his controversial move across the border in the summer, the Chilean having scored the only goal for the Canaries the last time the teams met in Norfolk two years ago, Clement played down any impact that that might have.

“Totally no factor for me,” he insisted. “First, I don’t know him. I don’t know the circumstances that were there last summer for a transfer or not. So I’m totally not busy with that. We’re busy with ourselves, with the team, to get the team in the best possible circumstances for this game and to be ready for this game.

“I have looked back at the previous game, that’s my job also, to learn out of the mistakes made and how we can do things better.

“I don’t believe, and I think that’s a good thing, that the players are really busy with feeling we need to get the result because it’s a derby.

“The mindset is there now we want every time the result. That’s a much stronger motivation than simply a derby or a game with a lot of attention or a full stadium or whatever. It’s another opportunity to show the right mindset is there.”

Clement, a one-time Rangers boss, says he enjoyed Old Firm games when he was in Glasgow as well as derbies in Belgium and France.

“I loved it because the passion was really pure, sometimes raw also,” he added. “People have a passion for their club and for football. I loved those moments, so I’m sure I’m going to enjoy tomorrow.

"You feel the excitement of everybody around you, the people in the building. I hear also from fans that my wife met while she was in the city.

"I’ve been in a lot of derbies in more than 30 years in football. I know it’s always a special occasion for the fans - it’s a life or death thing almost - and I enjoy those moments.”

Regarding Town boss McKenna, he continued: “He’s a manager with a really clear system, way of working, really clear principles. He’s done a really good job there, so Ipswich are a tough team to beat. That’s why they are playing for promotion, why they are in second place.”

He added: “They’ve been one of the best defences in the league this season, so you need to do the right stuff to create chances and then you need to be really ruthless to finish off the job.

“They also have a lot of offensive power, not only in the four attacking positions, but also in midfield, also with their full-backs.

“Everybody knows before the game, it’s going to be a good game because you will have two teams who will go for the three points and two teams who play good football.”

Regarding his squad’s preparations for the match, Clement added: “There’s a really good mood in the camp, they’re working very hard, like they’ve done since I got here.

“If I see some complacency, then I will stop that really fast, but this hasn’t needed to be the case. They’ve been working hard.

“But besides having fun on the pitch, they have also a lot of fun together off it, with some really good practical jokes between each other this week also, that was also entertaining. But the moments they need to switch on, they switch on, during the meetings, during the training sessions. For the moment, there is a perfect balance. I cannot ask for more.”

Defenders Kellen Fisher and Ruairi McConville are both available following knocks, Fisher having been subbed in the 2-1 defeat at Millwall on Monday and McConville having missed the two Easter fixtures after returning from international duty with Northern Ireland with a knee issue.

On-loan Manchester United left-back Harry Amass has returned to his parent club with a hamstring injury and is out for the season.

Veteran Jeffrey Schlupp is back in training, also having suffered a hamstring problem, but is not considered ready to return to action.

Winger Matej Jurasek and striker Jovon Makama are both out with foot injuries and winger Papa Amadou Diallo remains sidelined with a quad issue, while midfielder Gabriel Forsyth is a long-term absentee with a knee injury.

Midfielder Mirko Topic and forward Ante Crnac are out for the rest of the campaign with ACL injuries, while left-back Lucien Mahovo and Shane Duffy have also been on the sidelines longer term.

Photo: Matchday Images