After a season of proving their progress, Kenny McLean is aiming to finish Norwich City’s job with the Championship title.
The Canaries need at least a point from their climax at Aston Villa on Sunday (12.30pm) to guarantee their crowning glory, having confirmed Premier League promotion last weekend.
And McLean’s role in the run-in has been as crucial as any, following his move from Aberdeen last season and an injury-hit start to life in Norfolk.
“I think it’s pretty obvious that I’ve come on and the whole team has come on, and I think that’s due to the squad that’s been put together,” said McLean.
“Everybody in the squad when they come into the XI complements each other. I think the manager and Stuart (Webber) knew what they were bringing in when they brought in players like Teemu (Pukki) – although I saw him up at Celtic and I didn’t expect 28 goals, believe me!
“When you’re winning, the confidence is high and we’ve just been riding this wave all season, and it’s been excellent to be a part of. As a player and a person, you really do come on.
“We’ve got our winners’ medal to play for. I’m sure a lot of teams in this league will be thinking about their holidays because they’ve not got much to play for.
“But when you’ve got the opportunity we’ve got to really cap off an unbelievable season, we need one point to win the league and we will go to Aston Villa trying to get three.
“Villa have got a strong, strong squad. So whoever comes in, it’s still going to be a tough game. We have to do what we’ve done all season, focus on ourselves, and if we bring our qualities and express ourselves in our final game, then I think we will go on and win the league.”
The early season had its challenges for McLean, as a Carabao Cup tackle in the opening weeks led to a four-month spell on the sidelines.
However, plenty happened to ensure the Scotland international – and the Canaries’ fellow recruits – felt right at home in double-quick time. No doubt the approach will be repeated this summer.
“The club do stuff in pre-season, like we’ll have a barbeque at Colney and it brings all the families and staff together,” added McLean. “You just get to know each other away from the pitch.
“It makes your family comfortable about going out with the other girls and just enjoying themselves. And believe me, when your partner is happy it makes your job easier on the pitch.
“We settled pretty quickly and I think everybody was the same really. It does make things better.”
As no doubt, would the Championship title on Sunday.
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