Norwich City: Draws and Deadlines
Article by Colin RoweClick here to follow e-Norwich City on Twitter
As the clock hurtled towards 11pm on Monday night, many Norwich fans would have been forgiven for turning off Jim White and Sky Sports News as it became increasingly clear Carrow Road was closed for business.
The big news out of Norfolk was that of non-movers, with Nathan Redmond and Gary Hooper staying in canary yellow, despite interest from Southampton, QPR and other Premiership outfits.
In fact it was clear early on these deals were not going to be made.
As the social media rumour mill continued to speculate about potential moves for both Redmond and Hooper many suggested there were representatives driving to Norwich for last ditch talks.
CEO David McNally, in his traditional style, responded on Twitter that they better be quick because he had to be home at 4pm for his tea.
Some players did head for the exit. Andrew Surman, a vital part of the Championship promotion side of 2010/11, headed to last weekend’s opponents AFC Bournemouth while the long suffering Luciano Becchio engineered a loan move to Rotherham.
It is a shame the former Leeds striker has never been given the chance he deserved in yellow and green and all Norwich fans will wish him the best as he merits the chance to play regular first team football, not warm the bench.
Several players have also joined the club, with 19-year-old Swindon midfielder Louis Thompson signing for Norwich but being loaned back for the rest of the season.
However, the most interesting moves were for defenders Ignasi Miquel, signing from Arsenal for an undisclosed fee, and Jos Hooiveld on a season long loan from Southampton.
Norwich needed extra strength at the back and hopefully these new recruits can provide the competition for places the club so desperately needs.
Miquel and Hooiveld join other newcomers Vadis Odjidja-Ofoe and Conor McGrandles who completed deals last week.
Turning our attention back to the weekend, it would be all too easy to be disappointed with a draw against Bournemouth, but City again played well and can count themselves as unlucky not to collect all three points.
Perhaps, even at this early stage, the Y’Army faithful are getting ahead of themselves and will treat every draw as a poor result, but we cannot be so short sighted.
Bournemouth are a good side and will cause problems for many teams this season and it is important to remember Norwich are unbeaten in five games and are perfectly positioned, even at this early stage, to challenge for promotion.
Norwich now have a short break before a trip to Wales to meet out fellow relegatees Cardiff, which should give the new faces time to settle in and, fingers crossed, allow Hooper and Jonny Howson time to recover from injuries which kept them out of the action so far this season.
All in all this has been a successful summer for Norwich in what were undoubtedly difficult circumstances.
It would have been all too easy for a relegated, demoralised team to lose all its best players and be languishing in mid-table (look at Fulham), but Norwich have shown team spirit is still riding high, with many choosing to stay and fight to get back into the Premiership rather than trying to negotiate a transfer back to the top flight.
Ignoring the first-day defeat at Wolves, City have bounced back well with three wins and a draw in the league and the new signings secured in the last few days will hopefully keep the Pride of Anglia in the promotion battle.
On the Ball City!
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