Not sure that's what matters really. I'm willing to keep an open mind about him. Too often our players have wilted under adversity. He won't do that and as the senior player acting as playmaker behind Sargent, his experience and determination can make a big difference to a young team. We have to wait to see it happening on the pitch, but we were limited in our options to replace Pukki. Barnes has deep experience in both the Championship and the PL and that could prove critical in a team that has been lacking a leader up front. He won't have to settle into a new environment like Sara and Núñez had to, so hopefully he'll make a difference from day one of the preseason.
Sorry but I found out Gibson is on £40k a week https://footballleagueworld.co.uk/who-is-norwich-citys-highest-earner/
22/23 stats (all comps) Barnes: 45 games, 8 goals, 5 assists 287 minutes per goal, 153 mins per goal or assist. Pukki: 43 games, 10 goals, 8 assists 306 minutes per goal, 170 mins per goal or assist. Idah: 28 games, 4 goals, 2 assist 331 minutes per goal, 221 mins per goal or assist. Sargent: 41 games, 13 goals, 2 assists, 245 minutes per goal, 212 mins per goal or assist. Sure Barnes was playing in a team which scored 30 goals more than Norwich in 22/23, but it's not like he's had a poor season regardless. He started 13 games in a row for Burnley during their run-in. He knows the league, he knows what it takes to win promotion, and he knows what the league above is like, and in terms of goal contributions he was more effective than all our other strikers. I'm not sure there's a more cost-efficient move out there, he could be our starter, or if he ends up being backup because Idah or Sargent play to their potential, no big deal. Hopefully this move lets us invest more into key roles like DM.
I agree that Barnes is a "cost-efficient move" well suited to our present situation. We paid around £10m each for Rashica and Tzolis for a very low return in goals and assists. We could use that money now, but it's gone, though we may get some back eventually. As the statistical figures show, Sargent will be our principal striker next season, but he can't do it on his own. Idah has shown promise, but needs further development and experience. Barnes is ready now to hit the ground running as a back up striker, a support striker, a CAM playmaker or WL, adding height and strength (mental and physical) to a squad lacking those. That's a lot gained from a free transfer, especially when the other strikers are so young.
After his chat with Webber, Michael Bailey reports that both Aarons and Omobamidele are likely to be sold this summer
Aarons has been very loyal to stay this long and so as long as any moves bring in reasonable money for a rebuild that's all right. I thought Omobamidele was exposed somewhat after Hanley, Gibson and McLean were injured but he does have a big future ahead of him. The key lies in who we are able to bring in if they do indeed move on.
Let’s hope that both Omo and Aarons are not sold cheaply. There will be interested clubs wanting to buy on the cheap as they know NCFC are a selling club.
Webber said there was an offer for Omobamidele in January which exceeded the price of Godfrey so £20m+ from a big European club, and we turned down
Please can you tell us which clubs you think are NOT "selling clubs"? If what you mean is that we are in a position where we have to sell players at whatever price a buying club offers, then you are quite simply wrong, c.f. Wagner's end of season interview discussing his expectations for the summer.
Is this the new staff member that Webber suggested? “Huddersfield assistant coach Narcis Pelach is joining Norwich. David Wagner also wanted Terriers goalkeeper coach Paul Clements but he’s opted to stay put.”
In my opinion, Omo was not sold in January as SW hoped/ expected that NCFC would gain promotion and thus Omo would be a part of the promoted squad needed for the future. This has not happened, so if a decent bid comes in then he will be sold this time round.
The Pinkun is reporting that Hanley will not be available to play until Christmas. So, if Omo is sold (I think we must assume that funds are needed) then we will have just Gibson plus any youngsters deemed ready to play in first team squad, at the start of the season
Jonathan Tomkinson is probably next in line at CB. He's already appeared in the first team, most recently with a full 90 minutes against Bournemouth in the cup in August and against Burnley in the league last October. He went on loan to Stevenage in January and has had 4 starts and 3 sub appearances. He might have played more for us had he stayed, with both Hanley and Gibson injured.
Tomkinson might be next man up, but if Omobamidele leaves and we don't make 2 CB signings (I could see one permanent, one loan) then we're not competing for promotion next season. By the time Hanley is back half the season will have gone, and given the extend of his injury he might never be a top Championship CB again. We can't plan for him to come back and be a saviour, rather a nice bonus if he's capable of displacing what will hopefully be a new first choice duo.
Agree with two new CBs if Omobamidele leaves, but after two seasons of failure because of CB injuries has the lesson now been learned? We need four CBs. Sørensen is not adequate cover - that was made very clear. Byram and Hayden have both left so those 'makeshift' options have gone. If Tomkinson goes out on loan again, he will need to be replaced. No more gambles please.
Harry Winks is the latest name to be linked. Spent last season on loan at Sampdoria as they were relegated. Does he not have a history of injury issues? Similar type of player to Gilmour for me. I doubt this is going to happen
INJURY History Harry Winks Season Injury Days Games missed 17/18 Ankle Injury 150 days. 10 22/23 Ankle Injury 126 days 14 16/17 Ankle Injury 59 days 10 18/19 Groin Surgery 48 days. 9 18/19 Groin Injury 33 days 5 17/18 Ankle Injury 29 days 5 19/20 Ankle Injury 8 days 2 17/18 Ankle Injury 7 days 2 20/21 Knock 6 days. 1 17/18 Ill 4 days. 2
At 27, he should be in his prime, but his profile on WhoScored is less than impressive. DM players seldom achieve high rankings, though - I seem to recall that Skipp had a similar rating for us and this season at Spurs is currently 6.47. Bure's injury stats above would make me hesitate on Winks though.
I think Gilmour is a good comparison for Winks, or perhaps Leitner. He's worked best as a deep-lying playmaker alongside a player (or two) who can bring energy and tackling, whilst he focuses on tempo and progressive passing. If Winks is available, and we're prepared to trust his fitness sufficiently to build a midfield around him, perhaps we could end up with a Rolls-Royce player signed inexpensively, who could handle a step up in division should we achieve promotion. I doubt he'd be cheap though, and we can ill-afford another Hayden, Byram, Jarvis-type signing this season with a tight budget. I could see a first choice midfield setup with a Winks-New DM pairing and Sara as either a third central midfielder (4-3-3) or playing a slightly more advanced role (4-2-3-1). That could be a step up from what we've had, and Sorensen, Gibbs, Nunez, McLean could act as cover/competition to varying degrees for those roles.
If that is the case, I'm concerned that we would be bringing in another CM when that is our lowest priority need, given that we already have Sara, Núñez, McLean and Gibbs? Five players for one position is surely madness, when we only have Sørensen at DM. WhoScored's profile indicates that, at Sampdoria, Winks had 16 starts at CM and only two at DM, which suggests that your interpretation of his skills is correct.
