Wilshere named Norwich interim boss after Thorup sacking

Jack Wilshere has been placed in interim charge of Norwich City, who have sacked head coach Johannes Hoff Thorup with two league games left in the season.

Thorup’s departure comes after back-to-back defeats over Easter weekend, with Norwich losing 5-3 to Portsmouth on Friday before being beaten 3-1 by Millwall on Monday.

It ended a run of six defeats in eight matches (W1 D1) with the Canaries winless in their last five outings.

The club had been on the fringes of the playoffs before that run, but Thorup leaves with the club 14th, 13 points behind sixth-placed Coventry City.

Wilshere, who was appointed as Norwich’s first-team coach last October, will oversee their last two games, starting with Middlesbrough on Saturday before finishing the season away at Cardiff City on May 3.

“While we made this appointment with a long-term focus and in line with our wider club strategy and direction, unfortunately, recent results and performances have deemed it necessary for us to make a change,” said sporting director Ben Knapper on the decision.

Jack Wilshere will take charge of the first team on an interim basis for our two remaining Sky Bet Championship fixtures.

He will be assisted by Tony Roberts and Nick Stanley. pic.twitter.com/9BheuWfbvF

— Norwich City FC (@NorwichCityFC) April 22, 2025

Thorup won just 13 of the 44 games he oversaw in the Championship, with his win percentage sitting at 29.55%. Norwich averaged 1.2 points per game during his time in charge.

Norwich have scored the second-most goals in the league this season (67), with only current leaders Leeds United (89) netting more. However, they have struggled defensively, conceding 66 times.

He is the third Championship manager to lose his job since the start of the Easter weekend, following Cardiff’s Omer Riza and Tony Mowbray at West Brom. They are the 14th of the 24 clubs in the league to change their managers this season.