Norwich City begin their Championship season this weekend and we were invited to preview it alongside some of our Canaries colleagues.

For one night only, the local media in Norfolk tasked with covering the fortunes of the club came together to provide a bumper season preview at the Yard Coffee Shop in the centre of Norwich.

Radio Norfolk's Chris Goreham and Rob Butler were joined by The Pink Un's own Connor Southwell, Chris Reeve from Talk Norwich City and Michael Bailey of the Athletic to look ahead to the upcoming Championship campaign.

In front of a live audience, the panel answered questions and debated some of the key topics ahead of the big kick-off in Cardiff on Saturday afternoon.

The full show is available to watch on our YouTube channel, with thanks to Reverb Digital for filming the event.

Here is a snippet of what was discussed.

Q - Is Dean Smith the right man to take Norwich City forwards?

CR: "It was a subject that was quite fruity towards the back end of last season on social media at least.

"I personally feel that there has been a hangover or an unfair criticism of Dean Smith. There has been a shadow cast over him, not solely by his predecessor Daniel Farke but because of everything that happened off the pitch.

"I'm really excited this season to see Dean Smith rejuvenated with what he wants to do. I know we joke that he's signed two injured players but I think it's really exciting and I got carried away when we won 3-0 against Marseille.

"I really hope the supporters give Dean Smith a fresh start. I know last season was disappointing but I felt he couldn't do anything. I liken it to a broken car. He was trying everything to jump-start this car, and it just wouldn't start.

"This time it's been into the mechanics and now I'm excited to see Smith and Shakespeare drive this new car."

Q - What constitutes success for Norwich City this season?

RB: "Norwich have got to go up, haven't they? That is the bottom line of it.

"Most of us would probably take the play-offs even though it's not something I'm even enjoying thinking about although at least it wouldn't be against Ipswich this time.

"Norwich will be expected to have a top six finish at the very minimum. The squad is a bit like Barry Fry's Birmingham team in the 90s, it needs to be sized down.

"But you look at some of the players, Grant Hanley, Tim Krul, Teemu Pukki. There is real quality as well.

"There are no excuses for not finishing in the top six come the end of the season."

Q - Which young players could make an impact in the Championship?

CS: "I really like Liam Gibbs. Sadly, I think he may actually end up out on loan but in pre-season has looked really good.

"Jon Rowe is still incredibly exciting although I'm always reluctant to judge young players who play in seasons that end in relegation because they don't actually have to do much to create excitement.

"For me, the big one is Andrew Omobamidele. He's incredibly exciting and I think people forget that he has only just played over 1,000 minutes of senior football.

"Everytime we have spoken to him you get the sense he is very level-headed and doesn't channel that expectation into arrogance. He has all the attributes to become a top player and this feels like a big season."

Q - Who are going to be the key players this season?

MB: "I don't know. Everybody looks at the squad and goes 'that should be fine in the Championship' but you've got a load of players who were recruited to play in the Premier League and were apparently good enough to be at that level.

"They should be ripping it up at this level. You've got players like Josh Sargent who should be capable of scoring in the Premier League.

"Defensively, Andrew Omobamidele looks amazing and like a proper prospect. I love the look at him.

"The players who aren't playing are going to be incredibly important to provide the harmony. Like Jordan Rhodes did a couple of years ago. That extends to whoever the second choice goalkeeper is."

- To watch the full debate, head over the Pink Un YouTube channel