Neil not expecting any incoming striker news imminently

[Bethnal Yellow and Green 1,557]

Norwich have let one striker go, Ricky, and they were probably so desperate for him to go they didn''t worry about a replacement.

Norwich could have said to Vitesse that they wouldn''t sell until they had brought someone in, but then Vitesse might have walked away from the deal and looked elsewhere.

Norwich have since blocked Lafferty from going until someone else is signed.

[Hairy Canary 696]

I guess it depends where you draw the line Bethnal.

We haven''t purchased a striker since we sold Grabban, Hooper and RVW despite knowing that Bamford and Mbokani were to depart at the end of their loans.

This has resulted in us starting the season with one credible striker as Lafferty can''t force himself onto the bench. As far as long term planning goes it''s not been good (IMO).

[Yorkshire Canary 118]

Its not about money its our scouting that is pants. Afobe, Wilson, Wells and many others in and outside the championship have been picked up for modest prices from smaller clubs or big clubs where they cannot get a game. We need to get back to the young hungry player concept, there are lots of gems out there we as a club just seem totally inept at trying to spot them

[Dean Coneys boots 1,400]

One might forgive the struggle to sign someone decent if;

A) the club hadn''t promised they had learnt the lesson from last year- clearly this upped the pressure and they have failed to live up to their own promises

B) we hadn''t let players like hooper depart for peanuts without sorting replacements. That is just pee poor management.

An injury to Jerome and the lack of forward planning will become obvious. It was hardly difficult to see ahead to a time when loans went home and others left

[Bethnal Yellow and Green 1,557]

Hairy Canary:-

It''s not like the club have only just suddenly noticed the lack of strikers. Had it not been for a last minute splurge of cash from Villa, Norwich would now have McCormack and we wouldn''t be talking about striker signings. This is how fine the margins are.

AN has talked several times about wanting proven Championship experience which means the club are shopping in a very small pool. It is basically Kodjia, Wells and Assombalonga. If you consider the fact Nahki Wells probably doesn''t fit into what AN is looking for you can see why recruitment has been difficult. You''d have to imagine the club are now looking at other options, hence the delay - AN''s "waiting for the phone to ring" comment also suggests they have made enquiries/bids and are waiting to hear responses.

Fans who say "just go and get a striker" seem to believe Norwich City live in a bubble and are totally in control of their outcomes, unfortunately this isn''t the case and there are many external factors they have to deal with. Primarily the fact that there are 4 or 5 clubs, of similar stature to Norwich, all looking for a striker in a limited pool.

It is worth taking time to get it right, rather than taking the first thing that comes along and regretting it,

[Dean Coneys boots 1,400]

If that is the case Bethnal- then why were hooper and grabban sold for peanuts? Why did we take such a huge risk as to empty the club before stocking?

And why did we get promised this window would be different to last? Why were promises made that couldn''t be kept?

Which is to say I do understand the complexities and challenges facing the club; but that doesn''t mean fans are out of order to raise questions.

My own take is that every thing is looking very reminiscent of doomcaster days ever since Bowkett walked out and nephew Tom walked in.

[Mello Yello 2,289]

On home match days utilise the large "Elephant of Whiteness Big Screen" to advertise........" ''D'' LIST SEMI-PROFICIENT STRIKER WANTED. INTERESTED INDIVIDUALS PLEASE MAKE YOURSELF KNOWN TO YOUR NEAREST NCFC STEWARD."

"Salary is dependant on experience, all around ability and goals previously scored (must also vote labour and avidly watch Strictly Come Dancing). £8 million pound plus timewasters and those who don''t accept cronyism and nepotism need not apply. Budget over 30 year old well travelled lower-league journeymen may be considered. Must have own boots, hair gel, tattooed sleeve, wash bag, athletic support, moderately size eco car with a clean driving licence. Personal BUPA health cover and a great sense of humour are a must - and the successful candidate will also be required to subsidise their local B&B 1 star accommodation"........"ONWARDS AND UPWARDS!" "PRUDENCE WITH AMBITION!" "WE NEED A 20+ GOAL STRIKER HERE!"....... " WHERE ARE YOU?"....... "WHERE ARE YOU?"........hic!........OTBC......

[king canary 7,602]

@bethnal

I don''t think Norwich exist in a bubble. However I think you''re in someways understating our need for a striker- at this point we''re so thin that we just need a competent body to put on the bench for if Jerome isn''t playing well.

I''d have no problem with the club taking it''s time trying to get a deal sorted for McCormack, Assombalonga or Wells if we''d also bought in someone to add some competition/depth to allow us that time. A striker on loan, on a free like Fletcher or a striker from the lower leagues like Tom Bradshaw would have at least provide us with an option. The idea of N''Doye made sense to me as a loan to allow us time to get in the ''proven Championship'' type striker we are obviously after.

Right now we''re one mistimed tackle or strained muscle away from having to either throw in an untested youngster, bring back a frozen out waster or stick a midfielder upfront. This is not acceptable.

[Bethnal Yellow and Green 1,557]

I''m as eager as anyone for a new striker. I''ve never been a huge fan of Jerome so would like to see him benched more than playing.

However, to say the club should give someone like Stephen Fletcher a deal, just to cover the period of time the club is looking for a new player is crazy. Sheff Wednesday had to give him a 4 year deal to sign, there is no way Norwich should be going around doing something like that.

Every time the club signs a player it means there is less money for the next one - and the club is committing itself to years of wages (and potentially an unhappy player if he is not getting anywhere near the first team).

Loaning young players from Prem clubs is something that usually happens more and more towards the end of the window - and as I said it is a disappointment the club missed out on Abraham.

Naismith is a pretty able striker, certainly as good as anyone the club could rustle up on a free. It is more important to get the right player, over the right now one.

[Bethnal Yellow and Green 1,557]

@Dean Coney''s Boots

Firstly, £8m for Grabban, peanuts?

Secondly, at the time Hooper was sold the club had sufficient strikers and he wasn''t getting games. He was also a high earner so the lowish fee was boosted by the savings made on wages.

I''m not sure the club made any "promises". As I recall, they said it would be ideal if transfers were made early but that isn''t always possible.

I''ve never said people are "out of order" to raise questions, I have raised many myself, just many fans set out an unrealistic paradigm in which to attack the club.

We know they are trying to get a striker, evidenced by how close the club came to getting McCormack.

I don''t see how Tom has anything to do with this as he replaced Stephen Fry. Bowkett was replaced by Ed Balls who has been at the club just over 6 months and seen three players signed for over £8m. The club aren''t afraid to spend, they just want to make sure it is on the right players as there have been so many duffs in the past few years. (Whilst Bowkett was Chairman)

[king canary 7,602]

Fletcher is an example but not the only example. Any striker we sign would still be expected to get decent game time as we only have Jerome plus a potential mystery striker to come in. Most clubs have three strikers in their squad minimum (Sheffield Wednesday have 5 I can think of off the top of my head). Also a new striker would surely free us up to move Lafferty on thus saving us some money also. Win win really. There is nothing crazy about signing a player to address a need in the squad. It would be crazy to not use the money to address the issue.

Naismith is not a striker. He just isn''t. He could work as part of front two, but upfront on his own? Nope.

[Indy 3,297]

Saturday highlighted the need for a plan b and a replacement for AN preferred single striker system.

As others I''m very dissapointed in not getting in a serious replacement for Jerome, should he get injured but unlike others I''m pleased we didn''t spend shit load on a striker like McCormack.

Surely as pointed out we need to look at scouting as we haven''t had a very successful transfer policy in the last two summers.

My last gripe was with Balls and Stones going on about getting things done early and the statement by AN of getting rid of deadwood yet neither has happened.

[hogesar 9,657]

Pretty much agree with everything Bethnal says.

I suppose my only slight gripe is that - with the season underway and our obvious desperate need for a striker - I''d have thought we''d have been willing to pay a bit of a premium to get them over the line - an extra million or 2 to get Assombalonga now would be a worthwhile risk, in my opinion.

However, even then, i''m presuming that that''s a viable option - Notts Forest may not see it the same at all!

[Mr Apples 1,320]

Can someone please bite the bullet and start the inevitable "We will sign no-one" thread?

Apples

[OldRobert 38]

[quote user="Mr Apples"]Can someone please bite the bullet and start the inevitable "We will sign no-one" thread?

Apples[/quote]Where''s Wiz?

[Mason 47 1,376]

I think an additional factor in all of this is how to sell the role to prospective recruits.

AN has now come out in the press to say that CJ is a big player for him, and he is established at the club and with the fanbase. You also have Lafferty being pretty much frozen out, for whatever reason.

We are looking for someone or equal or better ability than Jerome, who is prepared to come in and fight for the starting berth (which isn''t guaranteed), who is at a smaller club and doing well or at a bigger club and not being used, and who the selling club are willing to let go for <£8 million. They also really should have the credentials to play in the league above, should everything go to plan this year.

That''s quite a list, and that''s before you even start thinking about other clubs.

[hans moleman 0]

The problem is you will not get the type of forward we want and need for <£8 million. Villa and Newcastle have proved that by spending £10 mil or more on McCormack and Gayle. If we want a player who will guarantee us a good return of goals then we need to pay the going rate. As far as I can see NCFC either need to up the budget or start looking at players who are realistic options!!

[Iwans Big Toe 312]

[quote user="Indy"]Saturday highlighted the need for a plan b and a replacement for AN preferred single striker system.

As others I''m very dissapointed in not getting in a serious replacement for Jerome, should he get injured but unlike others I''m pleased we didn''t spend shit load on a striker like McCormack.

Surely as pointed out we need to look at scouting as we haven''t had a very successful transfer policy in the last two summers.

My last gripe was with Balls and Stones going on about getting things done early and the statement by AN of getting rid of deadwood yet neither has happened.[/quote]After watching the match on Saturday, it seems that AN does have a plan B and that''s a no striker system. It''s a master stroke that means there is no rush to sign any support for Cam Jam.

[Essjayess 307]

Alex is infuriating to me as regards signings, since hes been at the club he has never seemed to have any problems getting midfielders, even when we wanted some defensive cover he got Pinto and Klose in January which are turning out to be inspired signings. But on the striker front, its been one failure after another, i.e Gayle, Afobe, McCormack to permanently sign a striker.  At one point Alex had to many strikers, hence we have seen  the likes of Hooper, Grabban and RVW move on, but we are now close to the 3rd full window shutting since Alex joined us and hes failed to sign a single permanent striker. I was posting i had my doubts he would find a striker a month or more ago.Whats his current situation? "Nothing imminent".."Never know when the phone might ring"....that can also mean the phone might never ring...hardly promising . A club like Bristol City can land guys like Kodjia and Abraham..yet we cannot land anyone. There were other guys around such as Grigg and Bradshaw, yet Alex spent way to long messing around with McCormack. Ive said since  last season ended i think City will finish 8th to 12th, with around 65-70 points, this is mainly due to  lack of strikers for me.Was really hoping Alex would help change my opinion but with 2 weeks left, still awaiting that.

[Nuff Said 5,118]

Pinto - "inspired"? Hmmmm.....

[Nuff Said 5,118]

[quote user="OldRobert"][quote user="Mr Apples"]Can someone please bite the bullet and start the inevitable "We will sign no-one" thread?

Apples[/quote]Where''s Wiz?[/quote]Just let me finish my "Beating the Scum could relegate us" post and I''ll get on it.

[Lessingham Canary 99]

Essjayess

You remind of little kids sitting at their bedroom window on Christmas eve waiting for a glimpse of Saint Delia, sorry... meant Saint Nicholas.

[hogesar 9,657]

Should....should I boo again now?

[Mello Yello 2,289]

Neil not expecting any incompetent striker news imminently.

[BroadstairsR 2,159]

"You remind of little kids sitting at their bedroom window on Christmas eve waiting for a glimpse of Saint Delia, sorry... meant Saint Nicholas."

I''m doing the cyber equivalent these days LC, regularly logging in to this forum for news of a striker being signed.

I should imagine that I am not alone.

[Mello Yello 2,289]

You..........are not alone..........alone.........alone.........alone.........

Resistance is not FUTILE!

[pete 318]

Expevted upgrade to Colney should see signing a striker piece of pi ss. Colney was upgraded wasn''t it?

What happened to the millions from PL last season or didn''t we make anyting ? Parachute £20m will get you a decent striker.

Still think Mbokani should be signed pretty sure after last season he is not in great demand.