The Canaries had a terrific start to the season, but they were defeated 3-1 by Sunderland at the Stadium of Light on Saturday, their third straight defeat and seventh in the previous ten games.
Manager David Wagner is under increasing pressure after his team slid to 17th in the table, six points out of the play-off places.
Norwich finished 13th last season, despite being among the promotion favorites at the start of the season, and there were a number of departures at the club this summer as Wagner rebuilt his squad.
While there were a number of high-profile departures, like Max Aarons, Andrew Omobamidele, and Teemu Pukki, defender Sam Byram is one man the Canaries may regret letting go.
Byram joined Carrow Road in July 2019 after leaving West Ham United, however his stint at the club was marred by injuries.
Last season, the 30-year-old made just 16 appearances for Norwich before being dismissed at the end of the season.
After a brief trial period, Byram returned to old club Leeds United in August, reconnecting with ex-Canaries boss Daniel Farke, and has since starred at Elland Road.
Byram has appeared in all but one league game for Leeds this season, and he has 14 appearances in total.
With Junior Firpo now out, Byram has been deployed at left-back and has performed admirably both defensively and offensively.
Byram has been a key member of a Whites defense that has allowed just 14 league goals this season, while also contributing to four clean sheets in the games he has appeared in.
Leeds have tightened up dramatically since the Premier League defensive troubles that plagued them under Marcelo Bielsa, Jesse Marsch, Javi Gracia, and Sam Allardyce, and Byram has been a crucial part of that steadiness at the back.
Byram has provided one assist for the Whites this season, and he scored his first goal of his second spell at the club in the 3-0 home win over Watford in September.
His performances have not gone unnoticed by Farke, with the German praising Byram after the 2-1 win over Bristol City last month, in which he made a number of crucial blocks to help his side secure three points.
Unlike Leeds, Norwich has conceded 27 goals this season, the most in the division, and they have made numerous costly defensive errors in games.
Dimitris Giannoulis has been the Canaries’ first-choice left-back this season, and while the 28-year-old has done well, giving two assists in 15 appearances, he was at fault for Middlesbrough’s opening goal in last month’s 2-1 loss to Michael Carrick’s side.
It’s still early in the season, and Byram has yet to demonstrate that his injury troubles are completely behind him, but following his fantastic start to his second stay at Leeds, you have to question if Norwich should have offered the defender an extension rather than allowing him to depart for free.
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