January transfer gossip

Can't really argue too much with this observation -

It was exactly the same with RvW.

Both (RvW and Hooper) are penalty box strikers but we just didn't play to their strengths. Alex Neil also likes the one striker approach and that is a role that Hooper struggles to play. When partnered with a 'big man' he becomes a different prospect but that just isn't fashionable at the moment.

A decent player who never really got going at Carrow Road. Fits and starts and a few flashes of brilliance from a player who was bought by a manager who didn't know how to use him.

http://www.norwich.vitalfootball.co.uk/article.asp?a=431397

 

Don't think we really need another striker now even if Hooper does depart. With our "one up top policy", i'm confident we'll be fine with Mmmbok, Jerome, and Lafferty, plus Naismith as an option and not to mention the likes of Loza, RvW, Morris and the Murphys potentially retrievable from loans (are they?).

If Lafferty does leave on the last day of the window as some expect then that's another issue but otherwise if things remain as they are i'll be satisfied come Feb.

 

We still have one loan berth vacant and I fully expect it to be filled, but probably not until deadline day.

 

I'm pretty sure that our players are loaned until the end of the season

 

I'd always assumed McNally would have some emergency call back clause should we need them all of a sudden. Not sure how these loans work or if, like you say they are locked in till May.

 

Depends if the loan payment was made upfront or if it's being paid each month I guess. Up front would mean they cannot be recalled i suppose?

 

Well we still need another CB more than we need another striker, but if we sell Hooper & Lafferty, we will need to bring in another striker. We need to remember that the players out on loan are out on loan because either the're not good enough for the PL or not ready. If Jerome & Mbokani both got injured and missed the last couple of months of the season then I wouldn't be happy with Naismith or any of our loan players playing the lone striker role up front. I wouldn't be surprises if we didn't pick up a striker as our remaining loan space. In a similar manner to how we got Jarvis.

 

I'm fairly certain that a player on a season long loan cannot be recalled by his parent club. Am sure that this was discussed in our last season under Hughton.

 

I think AN will go with RM as our 4th CB to allow him to buy either extra firepower to replace Grabban and Hoops. Id be happy with that too because the chances of 2 of our CBs getting injured is slim and we could do with a different option up top as Dave and Jerome are pretty similar.

 

Trouble is if Klose gets injured and Whittaker sold our defence is no better off than we were at the start of the window.

 

Unless Pinto is a hit?! He might be the best right back we have ever had! There again, if he isn't you're right.

However, our SQUAD will be if we sign a decent striker along with Naismith.

 

But if it'd been Bassong getting injured before January, we'd have been down to the bare bones. Our defence carrying injuries can now still be as good as the best defence we could put out in the first half of the season. Obviously more strength in depth would be nice, but without Whittaker we still have 4 CBs, two LBs and 2 RBs, counting Russell Martin just at CB. Few clubs have more defenders than that.

 

I agree with this. IMO we would be most likely to sign another striker in the fast mobile style and my guess would be Gayle late in the window if Palace get a replacement in. Given that Wisdom can also play at CB, I think we have enough cover there.

 

It will be a shame to see Hooper go, I really feel that he is the most clinical striker we have at the club, and as others have mentioned his link up play when deployed with a big striker up top was great.
Surely we should have tried him in Wes's number 10 role, I'm sure he could have given us something in that position.

I don't think we will see another CB come in now we have Klose, Bassong and Bennett as recognised CB's with Martin and Wisdom available to cover. Interestingly a Liverpool fan told me that Wisdom is better at CB than RB anyway.

I'd like to see us line up like this for Liverpool:

Rudd
Pinto Bennett Klose Olsson
Jarvis Howson Tettey Brady
Naismith
Mbokani

edit: Just seen RiverEnd's comments about Wisdom being able to play CB

 

Can't argue with that Suffolk. I'd definitely like to see Bady further forward.

 

Hooper update via Newsnow-
http://www.footballtransfertavern.com/premiership/deal-close-championship-high-flyers-to-sign-norwich-city-forward/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed: TransferTavern (The Transfer Tavern Home Page)#iqRFUFQpwSiD0qjU.97

And more of the same but from a NCFC perspective-
{Love what he says about European football / Alex Tettey }
http://www.norwich.vitalfootball.co.uk/article.asp?a=431474

 

Somehow they left the goal against Swansea out.
It seems ridiculous to let a player capable of that quality go when we need a striker.

 

Not so ridiculous when you consider he would never make our team, our style of play doesn't suit him, he needs to be part of a 4-4-2 which is very dodgy in the PL

 

Working ok for Watford

Or do they play 3-5-2?

 

Sup Peeps!

Just checking in from work. Any new gossip? Been ages since we signed a bloody player!!