Will Jennings: Just how far could Thorup's adventure take Norwich City

Former Norwich City striker Robins, appointed as Sky Blues boss back in 2017, was previously third on that list but with the club languishing in 17th in the Championship table, the powers that be made the ‘difficult decision’ to relieve Robins of his duties at the Coventry Building Society Arena.

From the outside looking in – granted, not always representative of fans’ feelings within the club – and given the remarkable rise Robins has masterminded from the fourth tier to virtually a penalty kick away from a place in the Premier League, the move looked a questionable one.

But fair enough – despite reaching the 2023 play-off final and an admirable ninth-place finish last season, the club have splashed the cash in recent years and a return of four wins in 14 league matches was deemed below the expected standards.

Robins’ removal from that list – led by Harrogate Town’s Simon Weaver and Manchester City’s Pep Guardiola, two men at totally polarised ends of the spectrum – propelled Brentford’s Thomas Frank up to third, a manager who was appointed back in 2018 and has transformed the Bees into a solidly stabilised Premier League outfit.

Frank arrived in West London six years ago – the same amount of time spent in the managerial position as Nigel Worthington, the longest-serving Canaries boss of my football-supporting lifetime.

Brentford boss Thomas Frank (Image: PA)

Which got me thinking – when will the club next have a manager who occupies the role for a similar duration and hopefully, like Frank, steer us to the Premier League and stay there?

Of course, bar between around six and 10 clubs, no one is ever fully safe from the dreaded drop – the current plight of Wolverhampton Wanderers and recent struggles of Everton prove that.

And of course, the chances of a coach who does so – fingers crossed it is Johannes Hoff Thorup – being poached after taking, and keeping, a club of our size up are sizeable: just look at Paul Lambert heading to Aston Villa after three thrilling seasons at Carrow Road, or Frank being widely touted to succeed Erik ten Hag in the Manchester United hotseat.

But after the brief tenures of both David Wagner and Dean Smith, coupled with no manager since Worthington spending more than five years in the job, how great would it be if Thorup can emulate Frank and build a long-term legacy at the club we all adore?

To be fair, Daniel Farke essentially did so – four and a half years is a long time in modern-day management and the hugely popular German guided us to a pair of unforgettable Championship titles.

But with all the recent talk of patience and building this new project under Thorup – particularly pertinent during such testing current times – surely we’d all love nothing more than him, Glen Riddersholm and co becoming synonymous with Norwich City and making the club their own.

As mentioned in previous columns, Thorup and Riddersholm have so visibly bought into the culture at the club and city – both on the pitch and beyond.

And despite our recent injury-enforced wobble, so much of what we’ve seen so far – again, both in football terms and more broadly – has suggested that Thorup could be the man to follow in the footsteps of Farke, Lambert and Worthington and propel himself into the pantheon of Norwich City greats.

Of course, there’s a hugely long way to go and we remain in what is essentially the embryonic stages of Thorup’s time at Carrow Road.

And while I do maintain the last few weeks constitute nothing major to worry about – we’re missing an unprecedented volume of crucial starting players and have been faced with a gruelling haul of away trips – performance levels have plunged and we will need to see some form of return to previous levels on the other side of the international break.

But on a week when the Championship’s longest-serving manager left the league, it’s exciting to consider where this bold new era – obviously bolstered by additional, Mark Attanasio-fuelled financial investment in the future – under Thorup can take us.

If he can do what Frank’s done, eclipse Worthington and still here in 2030, I think it’s fair to say we would have all enjoyed the ride.