Norwich City star makes Leeds United play-offs admission but declares three big reasons for hope

Norwich City ace Jack Stacey has made an admission about what the Canaries will face in the play-offs - but with a specific Leeds United plan and three particular reasons for hope.

David Wagner’s Canaries sealed the Championship’s sixth and final play-off spot despite Saturday’s final day defeat at Birmingham City and will now face third-placed finishers Leeds in the semi-finals.

Norwich right-back Jack Stacey says that sealing a play-offs place was a case of initial mission accomplished, and has now set his sights on Farke’s Whites. The 28-year-old has declared his respect for Leeds, hailing both the team and individual quality but eyeing a specific plan in Sunday’s first leg at Carrow Road.

The home atmosphere, says Stacey, is a big reason for hope, as are Norwich’s two displays against Leeds in the regular season, games that Farke’s Whites won but only by narrow margins.

An 85th-minute Crysencio Summerville winner gave Leeds a 3-2 win at Carrow Road last October - and Patrick Bamford then bagged the only goal of the game in the reverse fixture at Elland Road in January.

"The goal over 46 games and especially recently was try to get into the play-offs," said Stacey to the club’s official website.

"The goal has been achieved so our energies are now focusing forward. I think the thing you can take from today is the importance of a home atmosphere. We saw that ourselves with the Ipswich game, it's something we want to create for Leeds and try to use that to our advantage.

"We know they're a good team and have a lot of real individual quality. The two games we've had against them, we've not come out on the right side of the result, but they've been tight games.

"They've been good games and performances in aspects, and we want to take those aspects into the game and stop the negative things that went against us.

"When I signed for the club, the goal was always to be challenging for promotion and we've managed to do that over 46 games, then we have three games to achieve it."