Well, here we go.
The transfer window is open, from now til 9 August. Stuart Webber, we know, has been making his plans for some time and laying whatever groundwork he can.
Though we have a spectrum of views about the state of our club, I think we all share a sense that this window is a pivotal one for us. We know there’ll need to be a surplus of income over expenditure – can we manage that, while moving forwards rather than backwards?
The interesting news: we’ll be bringing in several new players. I’d guess 4-5, maybe more.
The challenging news: they probably won’t be familiar to us.
The days of Norwich City signing the likes of Steven Naismith, Matt Jarvis, Robbie Brady, Lewis Grabban, Gary Hooper – all known to us from their previous clubs – are over, at least for now.
We’ll be signing more of the likes of Christoph Zimmermann, Tom Trybull, Mario Vrancic, Onel Hernandez. Hands up everyone who’d heard of all four before they joined us. Three? Two? One?
As before, our fans will divide into two groups of reaction to the new signings: “I’ve never heard of him, it’ll be interesting to see what he can do” and “I’ve never heard of him, he must be rubbish”.
Despite the financial constraints, expectations will be high of Daniel Farke’s team going into the new season. Some of those expectations are reasonable. While our new-found resilience in many away games was very welcome, we want to see a more dynamic and exciting approach at home. We didn’t win enough points at Carrow Road, and we didn’t deserve to.
Farke has indicated that his hands were tied by the attacking players he inherited and hasn’t yet had the chance to replace. He says he wants to play a more positive style, but needs pacier strikers to allow play to develop more quickly. That sounds reasonable, but the proof of the pudding will be in the eating.
There’s another key strand to the reshaping of our team, of course.
We all know that the Academy, and whatever programmes we’ve had for developing young players, haven’t delivered enough in recent years. While first-team changes are understandably higher profile, Stuart Webber has actually been just as decisive (and arguably more brutal) with those areas behind the scenes.
The team running our youth department has been swept away and replaced from top to bottom – the top now being our Head Coach. Developing young players is a known specialty of Daniel Farke, and he’s imposed his views and judgement on what he clearly saw as a mess.
In a recent interview where Farke talked about what he found at Norwich, perhaps the most remarkable comments concerned James Maddison. Seeing that previous managers – not just Alex Neil but also Alan Irvine – didn’t consider Madders ready to play for us, Farke expected he’d follow suit and send the player out on loan. But one look at Madders in training was enough to change his mind and pencil him onto the City team sheet for the season ahead.
We know the rest.
The new investment in the Academy won’t pay off properly for some years, of course, but Farke identified some other existing players who, with tailored attention and management, were close to contributing to the first team.
The individual programmes varied. Jamal Lewis (never noticed by Alex Neil or Alan Irvine, as far as I can tell) was ready to be blooded straightaway. Ben Godfrey would benefit most from playing – and starring, as it’s turned out – at Shrewsbury.
Todd Cantwell’s development would be best served by playing in Holland. His confidence and maturity will have been boosted by his success at Fortuna Sittard.
Meanwhile, the rave reviews for Remi Matthews at Plymouth suggest that we may not need another keeper, and can devote one of our loan slots to an attacker.
Those clubs would love to have our players back next season. But it won’t happen – they’re ours, and we have plans for them.
Some of these young players are “our own” in every sense. Todd Cantwell was born in Dereham; Remi Matthews (like me) in Gorleston. My one plea to City fans would be to give them a chance. Young players make mistakes, sometimes from trying too hard – let’s have a little patience and show them, for their sake and ours, that we’re behind them.
There will be departures, of course. As finances stand, selling James Maddison is an imperative to compensate for the final withdrawal of parachute payments. Beyond that, though, the departures will be at our choice and on our terms.
I’m not ducking the issue by avoiding specific names. Just mindful that I don’t have any inside track and my record of speculation leaves a lot to be desired. A year ago I thought – and probably said – we’d sell Timm Klose and keep Jonny Howson.
Anyway, only the most cynical and malicious of our fans won’t be wishing Stuart Webber well in the next couple of months.
Even knowing that most transfer rumours are unfounded, many of us will be following them with at least as much passion as the World Cup.
Excellent post Stewart and I thought your comment re ‘giving the young players a chance without getting on their backs’ was very apt.
I know a fellow fan who was bemoaning the fact last August that we were having a 20 year old in the team – the rest is history!!!!
Not only did Maddison play for us under Irvine, he scored too.
Maddison never started under Irvine (despite the begging of Wes and other players) – only came on for few minutes at the end of games
While that may be, you said…
“Seeing that previous managers – not just Alex Neil but also Alan Irvine – didn’t consider Madders ready to play for us,”
Maddison featured in the match day squad for 7/10 of Irvine’s games, featuring in 3, scoring in 1. Worth noting that Irvine was actually winning games and had a far more experienced squad at his disposal. For what was at the time a 20 year old, that’s a decent show of confidence and a perfectly reasonable break-in period. It took Hernandez six games to get a start, after all.
I think you’re being disingenuous.
Yes, what I said was technically incorrect – Irvine did bring Maddison on for a few minutes at the end of three games.
Like his teammates, I don’t regard that as any commitment to playing him. It’s fully understandable that Maddison is now giving glowing thanks to Farke for developing his career – and not a word about Alex Neil or Alan Irvine.
An excellent and realistic assessment of where we stand at the beginning of this window.
Something tells me Ben Godfrey will be getting a lot of game time. If he can do it at the very top of EFL1 there should be no reason why he cannot succeed in a yellow shirt in the Championship.
As you so rightly say, the couple of youngsters we will surely introduce (I expect Cantwell to be involved also, and indeed Matthews) must be cut some slack by the fanbase in terms of consistency of performance.
I must admit I’m hoping for some outs as much as ins!
Indeed!
Yes Ed, not to mention that complete unknown named Jamal! Great article Stuart.
I think it is a little early to be hailing Farke as a development genius. Young players can develop fast and whilst I couldn’t understand Madders being excluded the season prior, both he and Lewis, may not have been ready. With respect to Matthews and in particular Godfrey, both having done so well away from CR, might well have excelled here and might even have seen us do better ourselves, Maybe Farke too is cautious? It was under Neil that Madders further developed with his loan in Scotland. You can argue these things a million different ways, but for me (And I acknowledge I can’t possibly know if they are ready) if Farke is all about giving youth a chance, why did we not integrate and give some minutes to a few more youngsters when it was clear the playoffs were beyond us? Arrans seems held in high regard, Abrahams or Fonkeu might have been given a look, afterall the striker options Farke had, seemed unsuitable, have a look at them. I will mention Idah, it seems like he could be mustard and in fairness to Farke he has been exposing him to the first team. Lets see how he is developed next season. Will he be loaned, is he good enough to make the bench and subsequently the team. Other clubs push their best and brightest early, can we with Idah?
I think too that it is a little difficult to generalise into two groups:
“As before, our fans will divide into two groups of reaction to the new signings: “I’ve never heard of him, it’ll be interesting to see what he can do” and “I’ve never heard of him, he must be rubbish”.”
The latest speculation seems to be about Marvin Ducksch. For him I would very much be in the first camp. But he has a good record over the last season and half in the German second tier.
But when I hear we are looking at a forth tier player with a pretty average record, I’m still interested if Webber can pull a rabbit out of a hat, but I can’t help also thinking, but he’ll likely be rubbish, why is he/was he earning peanuts at such a low level?
I’ll support them and hope for the best, but I’ll be expecting more Srbeny than Trybull. Srbeny may yet come good, but the lower you shop the longer its likely to take for the player to transition from looking Rubbish and out of their depth, to useful to maybe even good.
On your other point about the youngsters and needing support, you’re damned right, but I’d extend that, no player will thrive under abuse from his own fans. If they’ve had a stinker, OK boo at the end, but picking at every mistake and chipping away at certain individuals helps no one.
By all means of course let rip on forums, if a player is dull enough to read what us keyboard warriors say online after they’ve stunk up the pitch then more fool them, unless of course they can use it to get better.
Bah!
Thanks, General. Not sure anyone is hailing Farke as a development genius (or any other sort of genius); it’s simply that he was known in Germany for that particular aptitude.
In terms of reaction to signings, I wish all fans were as thoughtful and selective as you!
Hi Stewart
A very good summary of what possibly to expect in the transfer window.
As for Maddison if he leaves I expect it to late in the window due to the injury, any buyers will want to see that he is fully fit in preseason and as the window shuts prior to the season starting he could still be here till the January window.
We are already in for another burst of rumours and today it is for another ex Dortmund player a 24 year old striker so as Danny Rose says start goggling to get the full facts on MARVIN DUCKSCH who plays for Holstien Kiel.
As you say the youngster need time and supporters need to be patient not only for those from the Academy but also for the new players arriving they willing possibly need time to adapt to a new country, league, language and mostly style of play.
As at the moment city can’t rely on the transfer of Maddison to bolster the funds abd this puts a big hole in the self financing model will the board be willing to help out till he can be sold.
Others like Oliveria, Murphy, Klose, Pinto could help to cover the short fall Watkins could also go to Bristol but the big dilemma is what can city do to resolve the issue if Naismith, Jarvis and Martin until this is sorted city are paying out large sums of money for no return.
Martin give him a free transfer then Rangers might give him another year
Jarvis he should be advised to retire on medical grounds surely he will have medical insurance to cover for this.
Naismith banned in Scotland for the start of next season and probably that transfers to England, city might have to bite the bullet again and pay most of his wages to a loan club, the one hope is he said ge would play for Rangers for free let him go.
Stevie G could be cities savour if he takes 2 out of 3
Alex B – the issues with self-funding are both Club specific and football wide – the latter being primarily caused by the huge differences between the Premier League and Championship TV deals.
Hi Gary
Yes I understand that the cash difference is huge between the Premiership and Championship but we seem to have all our eggs in the basket called Maddison and as I said above if we don’t sell due to his injury then that aspect of self funding goes out the window.
We then have to hope that other players can be sold to cover the short fall in bring players into the club.
The other part was would the board be prepared to loan money to invest in the squad till Maddison could be sold as the team does need to be strengthened some how.
Alex – the Club wouldn’t confirm what the “funding gap” is likely to be for next season, only that wages have already been reduced from £55m the previous season to £32m for the season just finished. Still work to be done and much will be dependent on moving on the remaining “big earners” (most of whom contribute little on the pitch) from the squad.
Gary
Part of the clubs self funding is to develop players that can possibly be sold on at a profit so that the club doesn’t have to rely on the vast differences between Premiership TV revenue and the Championship TV revenue.
At present the 2 most saleable players are Murphy abd Maddison
These next few weeks will give us all a chance to see whether the gamble on the “new way forward “ will prove a winner or go the way of the majority of bets placed at the bookies. I am hopeful rather than expectant to be honest.
I remain to be convinced that Farke has the skills to play a more attacking style and am concerned that the saleable assets will be the ones we would rather keep than those we want to move on. But it a new season to look forward to and we must get behind the club even if a bit concerned what is in store.
It is a new era for me too having returned to the UK so I suppose I will have to be Hull Canary now. (Perhaps “Ull canary as they say in these parts)
Why on earth come back here? Sure we’ve all got our own reasons and I hardly mean it!
Alicante beckons for me. Maybe not next season but certainly the one after.
So Farke says we need pacier strikers so play can develop more quickly. I 100 % agree. Give the defense something to think about. Then the speculation about a striker signing goes to 6foot 2
Marvin Ducksch? I don’t get it. I’m not expecting pace is what he is all about. It has to be a smokescreen because he’s just a better version of Dennis Srbeny. I’ll get excited when the rumors start mentioning strikers who can actually move and put defenders on notice.
I suspect we’ll signing more than one striker (especially if we can achieve the departures we want to)
It seems to me from watching him on Shrewsbury highlights and the playoffs, that Carlton Morris is precisely the type of striker that Farke wants. He is strong, has excellent ball skills, good in the air and takes up inelligent positions. He even scores the odd goal or two! All he lacks is a bit of pace but is by no means slow.
I hope we are not going to let this talent slip through our fingers because he is going to make an impact for some club in the future and I want it to be us!