How Norwich City defied the odds to make it back to the Premier League
By ITV News Anglia's Andy Ward
Before a ball was kicked this season, the prospect of Premier League promotion seemed like a pipe dream for Norwich City.
However, despite selling more than £30 million worth of talent, the Canaries have achieved what many thought was impossible.
And they've done it in style.
Their young, vibrant team has been a pleasure to watch, and they've shown that you can make it to the very top without chucking loads of money at it.
Here's how Norwich have defied the odds to make it back to the Premier League and all its riches...
Inspired recruitment
When Norwich sold midfielders James Maddison and Josh Murphy to Premier League clubs last summer, many fans would have feared the worst.
The duo were the Canaries' main source of goals last season as the club finished 14th, and it's not too much of an exaggeration to say that Daniel Farke's side could have been in a relegation battle had it not been for the contribution of Maddison in particular.
Replacing that sort of quality, especially for a club whose parachute payments had now expired, was a mammoth task - but under the stewardship of Sporting Director Stuart Webber and his scouting team, the Canaries worked miracles in the transfer market.
Striker Teemu Pukki, who had failed to make any sort of impact at Celtic earlier in his career, was signed on a free transfer from Danish club Brøndby and has repaid Norwich's faith in spectacular fashion - netting 28 league goals and scooping the Championship Player of the Season award.
Goalkeeper Tim Krul, who again, didn't cost the club a penny, has been an ever-present while the likes of Marco Stiepermann, Onel Hernández and Mario Vrančić have all come good after taking a while to settle following their moves from Germany last season.
And then there's Emi Buendía who was relegated from the Spanish second division this time last year while playing on loan for Cultural y Deportiva Leonesa.
Norwich spotted something in the Argentine that no one else did, including Leonesa's partner club Leeds United who failed to make a move, and like Pukki, he has been nothing short of a revelation in his first season in English football.
His skill and tenacity has been integral to Norwich's success - so much so that the Canaries haven't won a single league game without him. Not bad for the measly £1.5 million transfer fee Norwich paid Getafe for his services.
Norwich have already suggested that they will not break the bank on their return to the Premier League, and will instead try to find more gems like Buendía and Pukki.
With a bigger budget to play with, there's every chance they will be able to do exactly that.
The emergence of youth
The famous saying goes that "you can't win anything with kids" but Norwich have well and truly dispelled that theory this season.
In fact, three of their regular back four are aged 21 and under, while the fourth, Christoph Zimmermann, was playing in the German fourth tier just two years ago.
Right-back Max Aarons has astounded everybody with his displays since breaking into the first team this season, and was recently named the EFL Young Player of the Year.
On the left flank, fellow academy product Jamal Lewis has been equally as impressive, and the pair of them have given Norwich an injection of pace and energy.
Centre-back Ben Godfrey is another who has flourished after being given an opportunity by Head Coach Daniel Farke, and the success of the three of them will give inspiration to kids currently in Norwich's academy that they could one day make the step-up too.
With a new academy building also on the way, the future looks bright, and you wouldn't bet against more players coming off the production line in the coming years.
Never say die attitude
Norwich have definitely taken the crown of "comeback kings" this season and it's that refusal to give up that has ultimately got them over the line.
On countless occasions, the Canaries have managed to salvage points from losing positions - including some games where it looked nigh on impossible from them to retrieve the situation.
Memorable turnarounds like the way they scored twice in injury time to beat Millwall 4-3 or how they fought back from 3-0 down against Nottingham Forest to eventually draw 3-3 will live long in the memory of Norwich fans, while Mario Vrančić's last minute equaliser against Sheffield Wednesday was another standout moment.
There's no doubt that Norwich's fitness played a huge part in all those late goals, but a lot of it was also down to their relentless desire to achieve their collective objective, and it's that, more than anything, that has ensured they will be mixing it with the best again next season.
Unity on and off the pitch
The relationship between the Norwich players and their fans has been great to see and there's no doubt that Carrow Road has been a much tougher place for opposition clubs to come to this season.
Following the great work of fan groups like 'Along Come Norwich', the stadium is now a sea of colour on matchdays with the introduction of flags in the lower Barclay, while supporters have turned up in their numbers both home and away.
Sporting Director Stuart Webber was critical of the lack of atmosphere inside Carrow Road when he first arrived, but he can't complain now, and like the team, the fans have certainly risen to the challenge this season.
Daniel Farke's now customary salute to the fans at the end of a game is a visual symbol of the unity that now exits between the team and their fans, and if they can keep that togetherness next season, it should stand them in great stead to kick on in the top flight.
Keeping the faith
When Norwich finished 14th last season in Daniel Farke's first season in charge, it's fair to say that the natives were restless.
From the outside, Norwich looked to be club going nowhere fast.
Goals were hard to come by on the pitch, and off it, the financial pressures facing the club were well known.
This season didn't start well either as the Canaries lost three of their first five games, and had it not been for a Moritz Leitner equaliser against rivals Ipswich Town, the doubts would have grown even more.
However, after the first international break of the campaign, something clicked.
Norwich started to play the free-flowing football that has now become their trademark and the results soon followed.
Week after week their confidence grew, and they simply refused to be beaten. In fact, since those defeats in August, they've only lost three more games all season.
Other clubs may have pulled the trigger in those testing early days, especially in today's sacking culture in football, but Norwich bucked the trend to stand by their man.
Doing so may just turn out to be the best decision they ever made...