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writeronthestorm

From The Guardian's Rumour Mill

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"Speaking of less-than-lithe strikers, it appears Norwich''s Grant Holt could be on his way to Celtic with Gary Hooper moving in the other direction as part of a swap deal. The Canaries have long been interested in Hooper and made a few attempts to sign him during the last transfer window only to fail and buy Luciano Becchio instead. But Chris Hughton has not given up on his No1 target and will move for him again at the end of this season, this time offering Holt in exchange. The 31-year-old was Norwich''s top scorer last season but has only found the back of the net on five occasions this campaign and not at all since late February."

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Would love this to be the case, mainly because I think Holt needs to leave the club. I don''t actually rate Hooper that highly, but we wont know till he gets a shot in the prem, the boy certainly knows how to score and has great technique for an English player.
However, i don''t think this is true, mainly because in an interview the other day Houghton openly said how he was chuffed he got his number 1 striker in and went on to say RVW was a far better player than Hooper. That''s not the sort of thing you would say if still looking to bring him in, in my opinion anyway

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Mins-informed, I would imagine RVW was his no1 target - so we may well not bother with Hooper now after the whole January thing

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Would take this. Presumably we''d need to pay a wedge of cash as well. As long as this is reasonable, I think this would be a timely move.

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As much as i love holty, i''d be happy with that deal. i think hooper will be good in the premier league and, as he is so much younger than holty, he will have a resale value. This summer will be our last chance to get anything for holt.

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Holt is now 32 so realistically has a limited time left at the top level, whatever you think of his recent performances (and I''m certainly not one of the ones slating him).  So to swap him for a younger striker that Hughton obviously rates would make sense.

 

Whatever happens, for me Holt will always be a City legend as a player who was absolutely key in those victories we had to grind out in L1 and taking us up to the Prem and staying up last season.

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I think this could happen actually. Probably mean we get Hooper for something like £5m instead of £7-8m.

I think Holt has had his best days here and it may be best for him to move on. What with his family being back up north, I think he is keen to follow them.

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This would be a very sensible move for all parties. Holt could easily be a hit in the SPL, Celtic could match his current wage, and offer him European football, which he would prefer than bench warmer. For City it would offer new exciting options, cover /competition ahead of the season.

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Unless Hughton (if still the manager) is planning a squad without a Premier League-quality target man then we will be in the market for a roughly like-for-like Holt replacement. Which I gather Hooper is not. We might still want Hooper, but not as the next Holt. Someone else not currently on our books will be that.

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Unless it''s a streight swap, Celtic can keep Hooper for I don''t rate him any higher than Becchio. If it means we pay anything more than 3 million then no thanks, he only has a year left on his contract and has shown the second half of the season just not going to be good enough to cut it in this league.

 

I rate Hooper as another Billy Sharp, Freddy Eastwood etc. just not quite good enough.

 

If it was me I would push the boat out and buy Kadlec from Prague, can play the striker role but more suited to replace Wes and keep Holt for another season.

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I''d be deeply sad to see Holt move on, especially as this season has not been as memorable as the previous for him. It will be a little bit of a damp end to a fizzing NCFC career.

I personally think he could do a job next year. While he has not been prolific this year, he is still our joint top PL scorer, which says more about our failure to score goals than any reduction in his abilities. If we are going to improve as an attacking force next year I think he would reap the benefits of that and we would get one more good season out of him at least.

I think Hooper was the alternative to RVW rather than the addition, neither seem to be as strong as Holt as a replacement. While i wouldn''t object to the deal in principle, do we need both Hooper and RVW? Are they not very similar styles?

For Holt I think it may be a good move though, European football and a last hurrah at the top level before retirement. I would still be unhappy to see him go, but if he just ends up warming the bench next year he may as well leave and get to play from a personal point of view.

I think it depends very much on what Hughton''s plan is for next season, and whether he is a big part or a bit part.

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All in all, given how Holt has made no secret of heading back to Carlisle, which is rather closer to Celtic than Norwich, I would suspect he will end up there during the close season - as for Hooper coming this way - who knows.

 

I thought he wanted to go to Tottenham, but how true that is I don''t know.

 

In my opinion, I''d let Holt, and given the option, get Hooper in. Along with Van Wolfy and maybe signing Kamara. It might give us more options up front.

 

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It''s onl an hour and a half travelling time from Carlisle to Glasgow. That''s an easy commute for a footballer who only does 3 hours training a day.

 

If true this would be a good move for Grant, the chance to play some european football and to get some winner''s medals.

 

Davo

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Most posters seem to have more knowledge of Hooper''s ability than I do. As a consquence they are happy to decry his ability, despite many of us sitting on the edge of our seats in front of Sky News and a private jet sitting in front of the terminal of Glasgow airport at 11.55 on transfer deadline and all hoping that Celtic would give way.

 

I only remember seeing the player scoring (usually) in a few TV highlights when he looked sharp enough to discount some of the assumptions about the quality of the league he plays in.

 

Hughton & Co. clearly rate the player somewhat and that''s good enough for me.

 

It seems a good compromise for both GH and the Club, especially with recent appearances in mind. Grantzilla out to pasture in the SPL, seems ok to me. Hooper out to prove himself in the EPL, seems ok to me.

 

 

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When was Holtys contract due to expire before throwing his toys out of the pram last summer ?

Would he have left on a free the summer?

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Grant has always been a sensational goalscorer for us when consistently played with another striker up front, but playing the loan role up top really is a thankless task. I cannot prove it but I''m fairly sure your Rooney''s etc wouldn''t have done much better from a goalscoring point of view if they''d swapped places this season.

There is no way that I want to see one of our most important players of all time limp out of the club at the end of the season without so much as a thanks, Grant still has nothing to prove to me, and I have no problem with his ''exuberance'' in recent matches, his desire to prove his worth may sometimes come at a cost, but - THE BLOKE IS A WINNER. I for one would like to see him given the opportunity to partner van Wolfswinkel next season - I truly believe that has the potential to be a devastating combination.

He isn''t finished yet.

OTBC

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[quote user="PurpleCanary"]Unless Hughton (if still the manager) is planning a squad without a Premier League-quality target man then we will be in the market for a roughly like-for-like Holt replacement. Which I gather Hooper is not. We might still want Hooper, but not as the next Holt. Someone else not currently on our books will be that.[/quote]

That person could be Becchio, who may have the same hunger to prove himself in the PL as Holt did, being three years younger than Holt. (btw. Holt and Becchio together make little sense to me. )Also, with an improved midfield I can easily imagine more frequent use of two-striker formations.

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[quote user="Budapest Canary"][quote user="PurpleCanary"]Unless Hughton (if still the manager) is planning a squad without a Premier League-quality target man then we will be in the market for a roughly like-for-like Holt replacement. Which I gather Hooper is not. We might still want Hooper, but not as the next Holt. Someone else not currently on our books will be that.[/quote]

That person could be Becchio, who may have the same hunger to prove himself in the PL as Holt did, being three years younger than Holt. (btw. Holt and Becchio together make little sense to me. )Also, with an improved midfield I can easily imagine more frequent use of two-striker formations.[/quote]

 

Budapest (a great city by the way!) I would be very surprised. If Hughton thought that he would have started with Becchio recently.Instead Hughton has put him on the bench in the last five games..

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Hughton''s gamble on Becchio was well worth it at the time, Morison wasn''t happy nor really doing anything here and Becchio at 29 was worth giving a go in this division. The reality this far is that the Premiership is a too big a step for Becchio. He might prove me wrong but the limited time I have seen hm on the pitch for City, he''s failed to make the impact.

 

We are all setting our hopes on RVW next season and I also believe Kamara will be given that contract unless we have more money than we all anticipate and a better option comes in as a Holt replacement.

 

I still think we need a new Wes to create these chances, someone who can link up the front line, wingers and midfield, I still say Kadlec would be the one to go and get.

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Becchio has started 2 games for us I think so far - hardly a chance to judge him on his ability. He can score goals, and no doubt he will here given the chance

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I would love to agree AJ, but given that the other strikers are failing to score and Becchio has failed to get back into the team, shows just how far down the order he is at present.

 

I do not think he will be more than a back up next year for injuries. But we will see, in the games he has payed he has not really made a case to start though!

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[quote user="PurpleCanary"]

[quote user="Budapest Canary"][quote user="PurpleCanary"]Unless Hughton (if still the manager) is planning a squad without a Premier League-quality target man then we will be in the market for a roughly like-for-like Holt replacement. Which I gather Hooper is not. We might still want Hooper, but not as the next Holt. Someone else not currently on our books will be that.[/quote]

That person could be Becchio, who may have the same hunger to prove himself in the PL as Holt did, being three years younger than Holt. (btw. Holt and Becchio together make little sense to me. )Also, with an improved midfield I can easily imagine more frequent use of two-striker formations.[/quote]

 

Budapest (a great city by the way!) I would be very surprised. If Hughton thought that he would have started with Becchio recently.Instead Hughton has put him on the bench in the last five games..

[/quote]

Not necessarily. Kamara already seems to be above Holt in the pecking order, starting/bringing on Becchio would just devalue Holt, which might not be what CH wants if he really has this swap deal in mind. With Holt''s departure Becchio could step up as a target man, of course if CH has any further plans with him other than trading him in for another player. Only time will tell... Btw. Have you ever visited Budapest?

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Don''t think Celtic will pay GH £25k a week, why would they Samaras does the Holt role.  Would only Buy Hooper for GH + £2mnot the £7m quoted.

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[quote user="Budapest Canary"] Btw. Have you ever visited Budapest?[/quote]

A holiday there some years ago. A really atmospheric place.

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[quote user="Tangible Fixed Assets anyone"]

I just wish to complain about Purple Canary posting in Ipswich Blue.

Aaaarrrgghh![/quote]

It wasn''t funny when you posted the same thing on the "Maggie" thread. [:S]

Nutty is right.....

You''re daft! [um]

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This story may have legs.Holts family are back in carlisle and he would probably have to make do with a supporting role here next season. i think Hooper would be more of an asset than some of his critics think andsad though it is we need to plan ahead and Holty being 32 his days are numbered. I would be surprised if it was much more than £3m plus Holt

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[quote user="lappinitup"][quote user="Tangible Fixed Assets anyone"]

I just wish to complain about Purple Canary posting in Ipswich Blue.

Aaaarrrgghh![/quote]


It wasn''t funny when you posted the same thing on the "Maggie" thread. [:S]


Nutty is right.....


You''re daft! [um]

[/quote]

 

Comrade Lapdog,

Following me around again, you should get some treatment for your obsessive compulsion disorder.

 

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