the mistake being made thai is that howson is not a direct replacement for hoolahan. both players can play in a variety of positions, some more effectively than others, but he isn't being brought in to replace him. he's here to complement him and add options and further quality to a position i feel we have needed a bit more in this season, just behind the strikers
I am not suggestion he will go in the summer or that I want him to go, just get the feeling if in the summer PL brings in new blood (as he does every transfer window) someone has to make way for the new guys. It could be Hoolahoops, could be Fox, could be Crofts or anyone else who fully deserves their place in the team. PL will buy better than we currently have so those deemed to have lesser ability will need to make way at some point.
Choosing which one to mark Hoolahan is only 29 ffs, why dispatch a brilliantly creative player, when even if howson becomes 1st choice, when as a luxury even on the bench would be an immense bonus: he's got a good 4 years left in him, as you said he is gaining massively in technique especially after 1 season in the premier league Look at scholes, giggs, lampard, gerrard - no reason why wes can't continue at the top level
As supers said, Howson can play in a variety of positions but we haven't got back up if Hoolahan is injured and we want to play someone in an advanced position.
From a squad point of view all those 3 should be retained: fox (def. midfield), crofts (utility player, especially crucial if lappin goes), and hoolahan (playmaker, can never have enough of these in the PL, all it requires is one long injury and the team suffers without quality back-up) Would welcome any new signings though However as I have pointed out before, part of the reason of our success is that we have never shedded any good players from our team in the last 3 years, or had any poached by bigger teams, hence our squad has got better and stronger. As better players come in the existing ones (unless 33 years old, or crap like wilbraham) should stay, they will always get a game under lambert's rotation policy
Would like to see a new signing to either go on left or right midfield, just concerned that if either pilkington or surman gets injured, we only have crofts or bennett to call on...
"I think it's paramount, you have to have good people, good characters, in the dressing room. We left out Wes Hoolahan today for a tactical change and he's been brilliant [about it]. "Wes was brilliant against West Brom last week, there's no justification in leaving him out other than the system of the team, but he took it great," Lambert said. I think that explains quite a lot.
The longer this drags on the more my slight glimmer of hope is growing... It's really not fair It wouldn't surprise me if Jonny's heart isn't really in it, Ben Parker (who came through the ranks with Howson) was saying before the match on Saturday that Jonny wanted to stay but was forced out by Bates who "wanted the money more than the player". Possibly agreed terms then changed his mind? (pleeeeeeeeaaaaaaaase... oh I know it's not really true...)
Just a quick one, Howson can play a variety of roles but in my opinion he is only premiership class at the tip of the diamond at the minute, Grayson has tried playing him at CM but he tends to go missing, hes only 23 has good technical ability and has suprising vast amounts of experience for his age, he can burst up field and score with either feet or his head! he has a lot to learn but the premiership can only improve him
It does appear a bit surreal with Leeds fans coming to visit little ol' Naarrgg pleading the transfer does not happen! On one level I have a sympathy and indeed empathy with what is happening at Elland Road, as we experience the same in the mid 90's. On the other side of the coin, after being rivals in both L1 & Championship, exchanging crossed words about who is the best, biggest, most successful etc it is in a perverse kind of way quite amusing to see the distress being caused as the reality hit home that Leeds are not the club they once were (and I mean no disrespect by that)
i think the fact howson agreed personal terms in one afternoon after 6 months of discussions with leeds ended in failure tells its own story. howson i'm sure wanted to gain promotion at leeds but clearly he has felt that his own personal ambition is not being shown by leeds and its board. i do not believe it has anything to do with money - he doesn't seem like that kind of character - and our wage cap means we can't actually offer much more than leeds anyway! its a big decision to leave your hometown club though so i'm sure he has thought long and hard about it. as is the case with almost everyone who moves to norwich, they tend to love it and i'm sure he'll be no different!
I wasn't suggesting it was to do with money for Howson. Parker was saying the club pushed him, rather than it being Jonny's choice, which it is believed was to to at least remain a Leeds player until the end of the season and assess his options then. What angers me most is the club is essentially saying "we assume we won't get promoted, so we'll take the money and run" leaving us short of a home-grown captain and with even slimmer chances of promotion than before. I doubt Jonny Howson's ideal scenario involved moving to Norwich in January, no disrespect intended.
Has anyone from the club actually come out and said how much the top wage earner is getting at Carrow Road?
In fairness you are probably right making that assumption. We are by no means a glamour club and hopefully never will be but if his ambitions are to play PL football and no one else makes a move for him then we are more than happy to accept him in to the fold.
true. there is no question in my mind that lambert has been very clever. i heard a few leeds fans murmuring why norwich are willing to pay as much as £2m for a player who they could get for nothing in a few months time. the answer is that we probably wouldn't be able to get him - a bigger club would almost certainly come in and offer far bigger wages because there is no fee to pay. lambert has therefore decided to pay more transfer fee for the lad so that an offer gets accepted and we get the chance to sign him. of course howson could have turned us down had he felt he could a better offer elsewhere but i bet he wouldn't have needed too long spent in the time of lambert and being at our training ground etc before he could see a forward-moving, forward-thinking football club thats going places. just my opinion, i have no basis other than guesswork behind it! lambert has said as much before that often players think 'norwich, not sure about that' but then he gets them to the club and shows them around and it all changes
I never had a problem with Norwich never saw the league one n championship as rivalry seemed we where riding along together just your owners showed more ambition, and obviously norwich can offer a higher wage than us, our maximum earners are on same your mid earners
i read on your board the other day that michael brown is leeds top earner on £18k a week. norwich have a wage cap of 15k a week + bonuses plus, our keeper just donated his clean sheet bonus to help for heroes. it was £200, so our bonuses aren't exactly mega money either
The latest on twitter is that it was 700k, rising to £2m only on certain conditions- like if he plays 20 matches for Norwich I think. Obviously no way of knowing whether this is ture. I can't help but think the reason for the delay is that both sides are pretty p***ed off about it getting leaked. No way Lambert would have wanted to after the CMS saga, and he never has before, and the Leeds board said they were annoyed about it. Don't know why they would delay it though.
