Timm Klose returns and wears the captain’s armband as Teemu Pukki and Josip Drmic both start up front as Norwich City resume their Premier League season against Southampton this evening.

Klose hasn’t started a league game since a 1-1 draw at Brentford in the Championship on January 1, 2019, missing a month with a knee issue and then being limited to brief appearances as a substitute as City went on to win the title.

After struggling for fitness during pre-season the Switzerland international then suffered knee ligament damage in a tackle during a League Cup loss at Crawley in August.

Klose returned to training in March before the season was suspended and is straight back into action due to the Canaries being without defenders Grant Hanley (hamstring), Christoph Zimmermann (back) and Sam Byram (hamstring) due to injury, although winger Onel Hernandez is back from a knee injury.

Otherwise, Tom Trybull comes into midfield in place of Alex Tettey and striker Drmic, who had been impressing ahead of the enforced break, starts in place of Ondrej Duda.

OPPOSITION VIEW: Saints need to prove they are still motivated against Canaries

The Saints are without Mali winger Moussa Djenepo through suspension, as he was sent off during their last game prior to the season’s suspension, a 1-0 home loss to Newcastle which was a fourth defeat in five league games.

Former Canaries winger Nathan Redmond returns to Carrow Road after the break allowed him to overcome injury.

Ralph Hasenhuttl’s team sit 14th in the table and seven points clear of the bottom five with nine games remaining.

NORWICH (4-4-2): Krul; Aarons, Godfrey, Klose (C), Lewis; Buendia, Trybull, McLean, Cantwell; Drmic, Pukki. Subs: McGovern (GK), Tettey, Rupp, Vrancic, Leitner, Hernandez, Duda, Idah, Martin

SOUTHAMPTON (4-4-2): McCarthy; Valery, Stephens, Bednarek, Bertrand; Redmond, Hojbjerg, Ward-Prowse (C), Armstrong; Ings, Obafemi. Subs: Gunn (GK), Vestergaard, Adams, Romeu, Boufal, Walker-Peters, Smallbone, Danso, Tella

REFEREE: Kevin Friend (Leicestershire)

VAR: Simon Hooper (Wiltshire)

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