City and Norwich have shared a surprisingly long list of players over the years, so ahead of Thursday’s Carabao Cup meeting we have attempted something slightly different – an XI made entirely from footballers who made senior appearances for both clubs.
There are some very recognisable names, a couple of proper throwbacks and, thankfully, a (terrible) goalkeeper who means we don’t have to bend the rules.
Goalkeeper: Simon Tracey
Angus Gunn feels like the obvious answer after coming through City‘s academy and later establishing himself at Norwich, but he never made a competitive senior appearance for City.
So in comes Tracey, who had loan spells with both clubs during the 1994/95 season. The Sheffield United goalkeeper played three league games for City before later making one league appearance for Norwich.
Defence: Danny Mills, Spencer Prior, Age Hareide, Javier Garrido
Mills began his professional career at Norwich before joining City in 2004, where he spent five years and is still remembered for that outrageous long-range goal against Everton.
Prior made more than 70 league appearances for Norwich before later joining City, while Norwegian defender Hareide spent the 1981/82 season at Maine Road before moving to Carrow Road.
And yes, Javier Garrido definitely qualifies.
Sven-Goran Eriksson brought the Spanish left-back to City from Real Sociedad in 2007 and he made 63 appearances for the club before moving to Lazio. Garrido returned to English football with Norwich in 2012, initially on loan before making the move permanent.
Midfield: Dickson Etuhu, David Rocastle, Antoine Sibierski
Etuhu began his senior career at City and made 12 league appearances before moving to Preston. He later became a regular at Norwich after initially joining them on loan.
Rocastle’s distinguished career included shorter spells with both clubs during the 1990s, while Sibierski spent three seasons at City before later joining Norwich on loan from Wigan.
Not the most conventional midfield three, perhaps, but the eligibility rules are doing some of the selecting for us.
Attack: Craig Bellamy, Darren Huckerby, Ched Evans
This is where the side gets rather stronger.
Bellamy came through at Norwich before eventually joining City in 2009, where his time included that memorable two-goal performance in the 4-3 derby defeat at Old Trafford.
Huckerby scored 22 league goals for City before becoming a huge favourite at Norwich, where he made 190 league appearances and scored 41 times.
Evans completes the XI. The striker came through City’s academy and, rather neatly, made his senior debut against Norwich in the League Cup in September 2007 before joining the Canaries on loan later that year.
So there it is: Tracey; Mills, Prior, Hareide, Garrido; Etuhu, Rocastle, Sibierski; Bellamy, Huckerby, Evans.
And spare a thought for Angus Gunn.
City academy graduate, regular first-team substitute and eventually a long-serving Norwich goalkeeper – but without that competitive City appearance, he fails our entirely arbitrary eligibility test.
Harsh. But rules are rules.
LIVE! Premier League 2026 / 27 News, Transfers, Updates & Viral Moments
