Norwich City: 5 Players the Canaries Should Sign to Ensure EPL Survival

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Norwich City are on a bad run of form right now; so, many fans will be hoping for some late activity in the January transfer window. I think it’s fair to say that the area that fans most want to see reinforcements in is up front. And the suggestion seems to be that will be the priority.

Nevertheless, there are other areas that Chris Hughton may want to strengthen, and whatever happens, more quality is needed in the squad. So, join me in this adventure of looking at some players that would add quality to the Canaries.

Jack Butland

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I’m sorry, but I have zero confidence in the ability of Mark Bunn to do a decent job in goal right now. John Ruddy will be out until the end of March at least, so it’s important that the club has a quality option between the sticks. Chris Hughton, of course, has the option of having a look at Declan Rudd and Jed Steer in this period.

But, now might be a good time to invest in some real quality, especially seeing as the club may face a challenge to hold onto Ruddy during the summer. Jack Butland seems to be the obvious choice given Hughton’s spell in charge of Birmingham. I think it’s fair to say that he is the best young English goalkeeper around just now. The Daily Mail reported that Butland might be a target in the summer if Aston Villa swooped for John Ruddy. 

However, with the strong rumour from ESPN Soccernet that Lee Camp is due to sign on as a free agent and the presence of our two young keepers, it seems that it’s highly unlikely that this deal will happen. But Norwich’s hopes might be boosted by the news reported by BBC Sport that the club are willing to listen to any offers for their first-team players.

Beram Kayal

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The Celtic midfielder is another one of those that has greater defensive qualities than attacking ones, and doesn’t score very often. Some fans may feel that we have enough of this sort of player, but if Chris Hughton wants to persist with the 4-2-3-1 system, then it’s important to have plenty of options.

Norwich does, of course, have David Fox available, but he hasn’t had much of an opportunity under Hughton so far. Therefore, the boss may be on the lookout for another option that would allow him to rest Alex Tettey or Bradley Johnson.

Kayal does have the added advantage of being versatile enough to perform a number of roles within central midfield. It’s always a little difficult to predict how well a SPL player will do in the EPL, but in this case, I think he would be a quality addition. The EDP has already linked the player with a possible move to Carrow Road during this transfer window.

Curtis Davies

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After Norwich City went down 5-0 to Liverpool this weekend, many fans have been wondering about the defence. I think most of us accept that the key to a solid defence is having Sébastien Bassong at the heart of it. However, when he is missing, the goals tend to flow past the Norwich goalkeeper.

Of course, he is a quality player that is always likely to be missed. But it might be an idea to get another quality option in. Curtis Davies is one of those potential options that Chris Hughton would like to target. And with Birmingham City forced into a situation where they will need to sell first-team players on the cheap, there seems to be an opportunity that would be foolish to turn down. It was reported in the EDP during the summer that Chris Hughton was interested in the defender.

Danny Graham

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It has been reported by Sky Sports that Norwich City have lodged a £5million bid for the Swansea City striker. Reading between the lines, it seems that Swansea would be prepared to sell their striker, especially with Michu scoring the majority of their goals this season. But they will only sell once they get a replacement in.

Therefore, there isn’t too much more that the Canaries can do, but this is one of those that could well drag on until the transfer deadline day. It’s also complicated by reports suggesting that Sunderland are also interested in the striker, but at this time, have only submitted a £4million bid. Nevertheless, some reports claim that Danny Graham would prefer a move up north.

Gary Hooper

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Of all the players on the list, this is the one that is most likely to happen. It has been reported that Norwich have submitted two bids for the player. The first was believed to be in the region of £5million, with the second more like £7million.

Norwich’s hopes of getting the player have been boosted by the fact that he has turned down Celtic’s latest contract offer, according to TalkSport, and the Scottish club are lining up Charlie Austin as a replacement, according to the Daily Mail, suggesting that they are prepared to do business at the right price.

I think it’s highly likely that a deal will be struck in the next few days, and it’s really just an issue of the two clubs agreeing on the fee. Reading between the lines, it seems that an offer that would be acceptable will be around £8million. So, the Canaries will have to decide if they want to gamble so much on a player that doesn’t have any Premier League experience.

That being said, I think he is worth the risk and I certainly think that he would do a very good job in the EPL. It would be a big transfer fee, but that would only really show how much the club has progressed over the last few years. In the context of the money available in the Premier League, it is certainly only a small price, especially given the years of service that Norwich are likely to get out of him.

 

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