JAMES SHIPLEE has a look at so-called ‘big-name’ signings, and why we don’t need any.
It is something which is thrown around a lot in this day and age, a ‘big-name signing’.
It’s generally a term for an excuse to spending millions of pounds and paying an obscene amount of money of wages on qa player who, a lot of the time ends up under-performing for the amount of money he was bought for.
Paul Lambert has already said this type of player won’t be arriving at Carrow Road but does that mean we can’t and won’t have a known name player sign?
The question is however, are there any that are worth it? The biggest flop of last season was signed for a massive £50 million and was expected to set the world alight, Fernando Torres, and ended up not scoring for match after match.
Leicester have recently signed Leeds ‘keeper Kasper Schmeichel, son of Manchester United legend Peter. Kasper has been deemed one of the major reasons Leeds conceded 70 goals last season. Do Leicester actually see him as a potentially great goalkeeper or are they looking through tinted glasses at the player because of how good his father was?
Paul Lambert has turned, in the majority, unknown names into stars since arriving at the club. There have been a lot of names thrown around regarding transfers this summer.
Matthew Upson and Scott Parker are the two most mentioned though the latter looks highly unbelievable. Matthew Upson looks like a simple case of someone reading about his life and finding where he was born.
There have been others but less known players who are generally mentioned with the term ‘Premier League Experience’ – something which has also been debated between Norwich fans.
Matthew Upson would certainly fill this role as would Birmingham’s Roger Johnson. Is it vital though? Many are more than happy to see Lambert go with his current tack and find another CB who hasn’t necessarily played in the big time before and trust his judgement.
However, the Premier League is a totally different world and a player with the experience of playing there can help the younger and less experienced players make the step up. They can also help to lift the team’s spirits if they are a few goals down at half time and to keep them fighting.
A big name and Premier League experience isn’t vital and although Lambert has ruled out big wages it isn’t out of the question. It will have to be for the right reasons though and the club can’t afford a flop.
The majority, me included, are happy to go with whoever is picked and trust Paul Lambert’s judgement. After all, there haven’t been too many signings that haven’t performed when needed and at the end of the day, In Lambert We Trust.
OTBC!
You can follow James on Twitter via @James_Shiplee
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