It’s basically one Transfer Window closed but another remaining open until next Friday. That’s the situation the Canaries now find themselves in.
The international transfer window closed on Monday at 11pm with an early night for all of a Norwich City persuasion. The only player that attracted international interest was Timm Klose, from his boyhood club, FC Basel. Timm completed a season-long loan move back to Basel on Wednesday with the deal having an option to buy available to Basel.
✍🏻 Transfer News | We’re delighted to announce the signing of Timm Klose on loan with an option to buy from @NorwichCityFC. Welcome home, Timm! #FCBasel1893 #zämmestark #SaliTimm pic.twitter.com/4GjL7fyVwm
— FC Basel 1893 🇬🇧 (@FC_Basel_en) October 7, 2020
Timm has been a great servant to Norwich over the last four and a half years and was a big fan favourite. He’s a big character and that has shone through time and again, it’s a shame to see him leave but with two years left on his deal at Norwich and with Basel reportedly paying all of his wages, it looks like a good deal all round.
Once a yellow… 💛
📸 IG: Timm Klose pic.twitter.com/WovLlRAhob
— Norwich City FC (@NorwichCityFC) October 7, 2020
Timm Klose goalscoring facts you didn’t need to know…
Klose is the most prolific defender (in terms of goals per game) in the last 25 seasons to have played over 50 games for Norwich City, and has scored 23% of the club’s headed goals in the last three years #ncfc
— NCFC Numbers (@ncfcnumbers) October 7, 2020
What about the other lads though, the so called “crown jewels” in City’s squad?
Emi Buendia, Max Aarons and Todd Cantwell have been involved in plenty of speculation all over the summer with Max being the subject of a loan offer from Barcelona and Emi doing one of those media interviews, probably instructed by his agent, in which he said he wanted to go back to playing in the Premier League.
That’s all well and good but someone has to make an offer for you, Emi and that, according to The Athletic’s Michael Bailey has not happened.
Norwich City are saving the entirety of Timm Klose's wages this season following his loan move to Basel.
That and other bits in here, as the summer transfer window enters its final nine days…#NCFC @TheAthleticUK https://t.co/JGHVN8h45h
— Michael Bailey (@michaeljbailey) October 7, 2020
Leeds United have been linked with Buendia ever since Norwich bought him from Getafe two and a half odd years ago. I’ve read that Marcelo Bielsa “never forgets a player” that he has scouted or had an interest in but with Leeds having just signed Raphinha from Rennes for a reported £17m, it does look as though any current interest that “El Loco” may have in Buendia is now over.
Bielsa’s new Brazilian winger can play anywhere across the forward line, which makes me think that any interest, if there ever was any, in Todd Cantwell is now also at an end. It does sound like Todd’s agent has been pushing to get his charge a move away from Norwich but it simply hasn’t happened. With just over a week to go for trading in the domestic market to happen, it does seem as though City could easily end up keeping all three of their young star players. Having said that, there is always the risk that some clubs might panic buy and you can’t rule that out. Stuart Webber will have a list of replacement players both international and domestic, although only the domestic ones could now apply, should the worst happen and one or more of the three were to receive big money offers.
With around £40m having been raised from the sales of Jamal Lewis and Ben Godfrey I would doubt that Norwich need to make any more sales in this window. You can never rule out a crazy, panic buy sort of offer from a Premier League club but with COVID-19 still a serious threat to society, there just doesn’t seem to be the same sort of money being thrown around, which is understandable.
If Norwich can keep hold of Buendia, Aarons and Cantwell past 5pm on Friday 16th October then all well and good. You’d have to hope that Cantwell can sort his head out and start contributing again. I hope that is going to happen because being a local boy and all that, he kind of has more responsibility in that field than others perhaps might. Max Aarons has been great since his own speculation and it doesn’t appear to have affected him, at least outwardly. Daniel Farke sees these lads in training every day and clearly he felt that Buendia and Cantwell needed a little kick up the backside. It looks like it worked with Emi and by the way, him being upset at being subbed off is typical of Emi and plenty of other players. Nobody likes to see the board go up with their number on it, do they?
So, if there is any speculation it is very quiet and under the radar stuff. The tabloids and media outlets are still writing transfer articles trying to link Cantwell to Leeds but other than that, it’s looking good, so far.
Eight days and counting…
OTBC