Norwich City

The Daily Mail is reporting that Norwich City winger Elliott Bennett is a target for manager Paul Lambert at Aston Villa. The link shouldn’t come as a massive surprise considering that Lambert worked with and signed the player as Norwich's manager.

It’s interesting to note that Bennett was largely a fringe player for Chris Hughton in the Premier League last season. Therefore, it’s quite possible that he will be a surplus to requirements next season, especially if Hughton strengthens the squad in his position.

But I think the player has a great deal of potential. He is the quickest winger we have available, and often the most direct in terms of getting crosses into the box. Nevertheless, it’s fair to concede that Robert Snodgrass and Anthony Pilkington are both better in terms of scoring goals.

Bennett was one of those players who struggled to adapt to the rigours of Premier League football; it was notable how much quicker Pilkington adapted during Norwich’s first season in the league. However, Elliott started to prove his worth towards the end of the season, helped by a stunning goal at White Hart Lane.

I think many of us expected him to start last season on fire after the way he had ended the previous campaign. But he probably wasn’t helped by Snograss’ arrival, and the former Leeds United winger went on to be a key figure for the club. Pilkington was often the player chosen on the opposite flank.

Hughton is the sort of manager that likes a settled side, while Lambert rotated the squad around a lot more. So, it stands to reason that Bennett didn’t have a huge amount of opportunities once it became clear that he was not the first choice. Nevertheless, it would be wrong to conclude that Bennett didn’t have any opportunities under Hughton.

But it could be stated that his play was a little stifled throughout much of the season due to the manager’s defensive tactics. Bennett enjoyed a few appearances towards the end of the season and showed some more of that early promise.

My personal opinion is that we should retain the services of the player, because he has more than enough quality to open up defences. I recognise that he isn’t going to be a regular in the side, but we certainly don’t want to let him go to a Premier League rival.

It’s fair to say that Bennett is a little bit frustrating because he has bags of ability but doesn’t always show that on a consistent basis. However, it’s that ability that illustrates how important it is to hang onto him. We lack genuine pace in the squad, and we certainly don’t want to allow a player to leave who can certainly do a job for us next season.

It is vital to remember how important the squad is in the Premier League, and there is no doubt in my mind that Bennett is a vital part of it. Finally, let’s not forget that it would be painful for Norwich City fans to see the player excel under Paul Lambert at Aston Villa.

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The Norwich Evening News is reporting that the Canaries will finally be free to open talks with Swedish star Ola Toivonen. It has been reported for some time that the club has agreed a fee just shy of £5 million for the talented forward.

Of course, there is no guarantee that the player will join, but he has admitted to finding the Premier League interesting, and Norwich City appear to be leading the chase. The situation has been dragged out longer than Chris Hughton wanted, but he clearly feels that he is worth the wait.

There isn’t a huge amount of speculation going around at the moment, so it’s good to be discussing something that is fairly concrete. The club’s official website, www.canaries.co.uk, has already confirmed the deals for Ricky van Wolfswinkel and Javier Garrido.

What’s interesting about the summer transfer policy is that the players that are being targeted are of a decent level. It seems that the focus is not so much on Championship players now, but looking for value for money in the foreign markets. Spending is not as tight as it has been previously and it’s pretty clear that the attacking areas are very much the priority.

It’s good to see, and hopefully fans will enjoy the football served up at Carrow Road next season a bit more than they did last season. Signing international and quality players like Toivonen can only help to achieve those goals.

I think this summer is certainly going to be an exciting one ahead for Norwich City fans, and the calibre of players being linked is high. Hopefully, more deals can be done before the start of the season and the club can start the new season strongly.

And with ambitions that stretch beyond pure survival, it’s fair to say that Norwich will need some players of real quality. I suspect that Ricky van Wolfswinkel is not a one-off case in that respect. It will be very interesting to see what the squad looks like at the start of next season.

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The process of buying from other European Leagues has always been a talking point in the English game.

There's been many success stories of foreign imports who have gone on to make a name for themselves in England and equally as many stars who have not lived up to their billing. 

Norwich City are a team that has generally tended to look to recruit from other English clubs instead of casting their net further afield, but the club appears to be gearing up for a change in direction this summer, with the Canaries being linked with a series of players from around Europe.

One of those players is Gary Hooper, and after watching Hooper complete yet another brace in Celtic's Scottish cup final victory against Hibernian, I decided to glance at a Norwich City message board to gauge an insight into how Hooper's goalscoring exploits were being viewed by the club's fans. 

Hooper is a name that is more than familiar to Canaries fans after Chris Hughton famously failed with multiple bids to lure the striker to Carrow Road in the January transfer window, but despite Hughton's persistence, a number of supporters clearly remain unconvinced that he could deliver if he was to ever pull on the yellow shirt.

Here is a striker that has banged in 31 goals this season, including netting in the Champions League, but yet some members of the Pinkun message board simply dismissed his achievements out of hand. 

Of course, everyone is entitled to their own opinions, but I found myself shocked at the level of negativity aimed at Hooper, who was being vilified simply because of the league that he plays in. 

No one can deny that the jump from the Scottish Premier League to the English top flight is a challenge, but players have proved before—and will continue to prove in the future—that it is far from impossible.

Taking Hooper as a prime example, I'm not concerned about his transition to the Premier League should it ever come to fruition.

His goals against Hibs in Sunday's Hampden showdown highlighted just what a clinical finisher he is, as he essentially took the game away from the Edinburgh outfit.

The quality of service from the excellent Anthony Stokes was undeniably a big factor in allowing his strike partner to grab the headlines, but Hooper showed that it doesn't matter if he is playing in the Barclay's Premier League or the Northern Premier League—if you provide him with chances, he will score goals. 

What's more, his all-around game was excellent. He continually brought others into play and led from the front.

He's a striker that has all of the attributes to be a success in England, and at the age of 25, he's only going to get even better.

Potentially pairing Hooper with recent recruit Ricky van Wolfswinkel has all the makings of an exciting partnership for the Canaries, but you can be sure that there will be some who feel that both players aren't good enough for the Premier League. 

Van Wolfswinkel is another player that is perceived to have come to England from a "lesser" European league by completing a move from Sporting Lisbon, but there is absolutely no reason to suggest that he too can't be a success.

It is both arrogant and wrong to assume that the Premier League is considerably stronger than most leagues in Europe, as the performances of the English club's in this year's Champions League showed to great effect.

The likes of Hooper and van Wolfswinkel could conceivably turn out to represent far greater value for money for EPL clubs compared to paying over the odds for so-called "proven" Premier League players, and for Norwich City, it is a recruitment policy that I believe can pay great dividends.

Other divisions—such as the Portuguese Primeira Liga and the Dutch Eredivisie, for example—possess a wealth of hidden gems waiting to be unearthed, and if Norwich can tap into such markets, the rewards could be enormous.

Players such as Cristiano Ronaldo and Robin van Persie have both learnt their trade in such leagues before making the transition to England, which is all the proof needed to show that there are quality players out there.

If someone like van Wolfswinkel can deliver even half the impact that the above provided upon their respective arrivals on British soil, the doubters will go quiet very quickly indeed.

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I think it’s fair to say that the vast majority of Norwich City fans are basically just relieved to have stayed in the Premier League for another season. It was certainly a great way to finish the season with those wins against West Brom and Manchester City, but the reality is it was a very poor 2013 for Norwich.

Therefore, the club needs to realize that now is the time to make those all-important improvements to the squad, a process that has already begun with the confirmed deals for Ricky van Wolfswinkel and Javier Garrido as reported via the official website, canaries.co.uk.

It will certainly be interesting to see what the transfer policy will be for the summer, but we think we all agree that the quality has to improve. There is little point bringing in a bunch of players who are of a similar quality to what is already here.

Take the example of van Wolfswinkel. We all appreciate that this player is a step up from what we have seen at Carrow Road previously.

Therefore, I might suggest that Chris Hughton’s primary aim is not to be hunting through the Championship and League One for the hottest bargain deals.

I suggested in a previous article that there isn’t much talent left in the Championship to take advantage of. A few people took issue with this and informed me that there are a number of quality players that could do a job for us. I do agree that there are players currently plying their trade at that level that I would like to see at Carrow Road.

But the sort of players that we are talking about there will cost the big bucks and will have a load of Premier League clubs after them.

Of course, there are one or two exceptions to this, and Norwich City may try to target them. I have no idea what sort of transfer budget there is to work with this season, but I would suggest that it’s bigger than ever seen before.

Hughton’s primary aim last season was improving the defensive unit, and this was something he was able to do. It’s pretty obvious that this season it will be all about investing in better quality options for the final third. They certainly weren’t good enough in this part of the pitch for the majority of the season.

I think it’s fair to say that Norwich gambled a fair bit in the January transfer window by failing to strengthen the attacking options of the side in an adequate way.

The signings of Becchio and Kei Kamara were token gestures as much as anything, and they did very little to improve Norwich’s chances of scoring goals.

The big thing about this summer is leaving nothing to chance when the season begins in August. We have been crying out for a goalscorer to take some of the pressure off Holt for quite a while now, and it’s great to have that box finally ticked with the addition of the Dutch striker that will be joining the team from Sporting Lisbon.

However, we can’t afford to think that the addition of a quality striker will solve all of the problems; he will improve things, but he will also need support.

As the squad looks at the moment, I would fear that there is a real danger of being overly reliant of van Wolfswinkel to do everything, rather like they were reliant on Holt to get out of trouble this season.   

Let’s review: The Canaries made great strides on the defensive side this season, and they need to aim to keep that record going. Let’s aim for even more clean sheets next season, and certainly fewer goals conceded.

The fact remains that they were still hammered on a number of occasions, and they certainly want to eradicate that as Norwich continue to build as a Premier League club.

Obviously, holding onto the best players is an important part of that continued progress. Players like John Ruddy and Sebastien Bassong will be in hot demand, but keeping hold of individuals like that is crucial to the continued development of the team.

Since David McNally has come in, we haven’t seen a major player leave, and hopefully that trend will continue this summer. I think the team has to take advantage of the position it finds itself in and invest in the team to ensure Norwich will stay well clear of the relegation zone.

The key thing about this summer is to increase the competitiveness within the squad, especially in those key attacking areas.

The central midfield area hasn’t contributed enough goals and lacks the creativity that we would like to see. The fact that they have been so poor in possession this season tells its own story, as does the lack of goals Wes Hoolahan has scored despite the fact he has played in a very attacking position throughout much of the season.

I think that Anthony Pilkington and Robert Snodgrass have both performed fairly well over the course of the season, but they can maybe improve the competition within that part of the pitch. I like Elliott Bennett, and he certainly has all of the qualities required to be a top winger, but it’s fair to say that he doesn’t always deliver.

It’s also important that we don’t read too much into the headlines that the youth team have been getting this season. We all hope that a number of them will make the transition to the first team, but let’s work on what Norwich can bring in from the transfer market for now.

What we are saying here is that Norwich City must pass the ball a lot better next season if they hope to have a successful season for one thing.

It’s likely that a quality passing central midfielder will need to acquired from somewhere, a deal that is going to cost a bit, likewise, a midfielder that can compete with the likes of Hoolahan and Howson to add a bit more in the goals and creativity department. Again, he is likely to cost a lot unless they can find another Michu type.

Then they are talking about an additional winger to ensure Norwich City gets the correct service into the new star striker and another striker to ensure they don’t suffer from a lack of goals. Obviously, there are other areas, like an additional central defender and left-back, but these are the big priorities.

It’s not a matter of the club signing a dozen players, or necessarily looking for the hottest bargains. But it is about having the best quality within the squad, really investing in the top quality that they can find.

Being a Premier League club, Norwich City know that there are players who will want to come here and showcase their skills in the most exciting league in world football.

Who they are and how the Canaries are going to find them is really a job for the scouts, but I would suggest that the process in finding them started a long time ago. Make no mistake that Hughton will know exactly who he wants to take the club to the next level.

That process will have started, and it will now be a case of getting those deals done. All the signs point to getting the targets in as quickly as possible, so it’s quite likely that the squad will be complete by the start of preseason.

Fans will be hoping that the holes in the team can be filled by that time.

A bit of extra quality in the side could make all the difference to the Canaries and ensure that they are one of the surprise packages of the Premier League next season. But failure to do so will surely see the club having the same problems that they have had this season.

Therefore, it’s a very important summer ahead as the club looks to take the quality in the squad up to the next level.

James Kent works for BSports and as a freelance writer; you can follow @BSportsFootball on Twitter and James via Twitter and Facebook.