'In their face' - Norwich City boss issues rallying cry ahead of Leeds United play-off semi-final return leg

Norwich City manager David Wagner says he is 'absolutely fine' with his team's nil-nil draw against Leeds United in their Championship play-off semi-final first leg.

The Canaries boss was upbeat after Leeds and Norwich had cancelled each other out at Carrow Road on Sunday afternoon, stating he was pleased with how his team had defended and to still be in the tie.

Norwich travel north to Elland Road on Thursday for the return leg of this Championship play-off semi-final, stepping into a stadium which will be wracked with nerves by kick-off.

"Absolutely fine with the performance, the shift the players put in defensively. Both teams neutralised each other. There were not a lot of clear cut chances. The game was quite even. I'm absolutely fine with what I've seen, very positive mood and mindset after this result. A draw, half-time, we're in the game. All cards are still on the table. Thursday we will go again.

"This was our aim, to really go in their face, we are brave and to attack them high up the pitch. This worked well without creating clear opportunities, kept them far from our goal. They had more ball possession as the game went on but in quite undangerous areas, we looked solid in our mid-block. I've seen a lot of positives. Half-time, nil-nil, absolutely game on. A clean sheet and a draw is a first step. Another step, the next step we try to do on Thursday," the ex-Huddersfield Town boss said.

Wagner sees reason to be optimistic following his side's performance and is relishing the opportunity that awaits in LS11.

"It does not automatically have to be an advantage to play the second half [of the tie] at home. Pressure is great, expectation is great. We know what we have to do to be super-competitive," he added.

Norwich extended their unbeaten run at Carrow Road to 17 matches, while Leeds ensured they kept a first clean sheet since the 0-0 draw with Sunderland at Elland Road last month.

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