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Republic of Ireland U21 international Adam Idah. Laszlo Geczo/INPHO
Forward Thinking

Idah scores twice in pre-season win as Norwich City gear up for Premier League return

The Canaries got the better of German fourth-tier side Bonner SC.

ADAM IDAH MARKED his first start for Norwich City’s first-team by scoring twice in their latest pre-season outing.

The 18-year-old striker grabbed a brace in their 4-1 win over Bonner SC last night, as the newly-promoted Canaries continued their preparations for the new season during a training camp in Germany.

Idah gave Norwich a ninth-minute lead, finding space before finishing emphatically after being picked out by a pass from Patrick Roberts.

After Bonner SC had equalised, the Republic of Ireland U21 international regained the lead for Norwich just before the break when he applied a tidy near-post finish to Philip Heise’s cross from the left.

Idah was replaced in the 75th minute by last season’s Championship top goalscorer Teemu Pukki, who scored Norwich’s fourth goal after Onel Hernandez had increased their advantage earlier in the second half.

Afterwards, Daniel Farke spoke positively about the contribution of Idah, who got his first senior outing for the club as a substitute in a 2-2 draw with Arminia Bielefeld on Sunday.

The Norwich City boss was also simultaneously reluctant to read too much into the performance of an inexperienced player against a side from the fourth tier of German football.

Nevertheless, it’s certainly encouraging — particularly from an Irish perspective — to see a player of Idah’s potential featuring prominently in his club’s plans, with their Premier League opener against European champions Liverpool just over three weeks away.

Norwich City Football Club / YouTube

“Adam is an outstanding finisher and he proved this today. He showed really good instinct and had two good finishes,” Farke told Norwich City’s official website.

“There are also other topics in the game. I don’t like to praise the young lads too much. He has to step up in other areas of his game but it’s always a good sign when a striker scores.”

It has been a busy summer for Idah, who last month helped the Republic of Ireland U21s to reach the semi-finals of the Toulon Tournament. Stephen Kenny’s side kicked off that campaign with a 4-1 win against China, in which Idah scored twice.

The Cork-born youngster also notched a brace in his U21 international debut back in March, when Ireland started their bid to qualify for the 2021 European Championships with a 3-0 home win against Luxembourg.

Norwich City showed their faith in Idah earlier this month by rewarding him with a new contract that ties him to the club until the summer of 2023.

After impressing against Bonner SC, he’s likely to face a much stiffer test should he feature in Friday’s friendly against Bundesliga side Schalke.

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