Norwich City made £8.5m transfer mistake - Everton must still be laughing | OneFootball

The Canaries went above and beyond to bring in Steven Naismith, but he never lived up to the hype at Carrow Road

In the 2015/16 season, Norwich City were huge fans of Steven Naismith. They attempted to sign him in the summer transfer window before getting their man later in the January window.

The Scotsman had just come off the back of his most productive season at Goodison Park since signing from Rangers, scoring nine and assisting three in all competitions, which included a few in the Europa League, too. Still, he ended the campaign having started just one of the final ten league games.

Despite this, fellow Scotsman Alex Niel, who was in the Carrow Road dugout at the time, pushed to sign the then-28-year-old, but Everton rebuffed their bid on deadline day, which was worth up to £8 million.

However, it wouldn't be long before Naismith was lining up for Norwich. After being mainly a fringe player for the Toffees during the beginning of the 2015/16 term, he was allowed to leave that January.

Despite this, Norwich still had to pay more than they valued him at in the summer, and in the end, he went down as an £8.5 million mistake.

Norwich City's head-scratching deal for Steven Naismith and the relegation which followed

Many regarded Naismith as a very inconsistent wideman throughout the time he spent in England, and that sentiment was cemented during the 2015/16 campaign.

Both Everton and Norwich saw glimpses of quality, hence why the Toffees rejected their Premier League rivals' advances to sign him at the start of the season. But come January, Everton were ready to give up on the Scotsman.

Earlier in the season, Naismith had scored a perfect hat-trick in a 3-1 win over Chelsea, but four months later, he was in the midst of a run of just one league appearance in 13.

Norwich still saw quality in the winger, and tabled yet another offer for him, this time securing the deal for £8.5 million. But for someone who had been reduced to a fringe player in a mid-table side, it seemed like quite a lot.

Alex Neil was ready to put his faith in his fellow countryman, and it looked to pay off immediately after he netted the second in his debut against Liverpool, a game which Norwich lost 5-4 in dramatic fashion.

That would be the only real highlight for Naismith in his first half-season at Carrow Road, as Norwich fell down the league drastically, losing 11 of the 16 league games since his arrival, including against Aston Villa, who won just three times all season.

Norwich suffered relegation at the end of the term, finishing in 19th. It was a frustrating second half of the season, as the Canaries looked in a solid position coming out of the January transfer window. As for Naismith, he would have the chance to gain some momentum in the second tier in the 2016/17 campaign.

Steven Naismith couldn't find form for Norwich City in the Championship

If Naismith was able to perform to a good level in the Championship, Norwich could have justified the £8.5 million spent on the Scot, but he once again didn't set the world alight during the 2016/17 campaign.

Naismith would continue his trend of starting seasons well, netting on his second-tier debut against Blackburn Rovers, but injuries and inconsistencies limited him to just 20 starts that term, scoring just five times as Norwich failed to finish inside the top six in their first season back in the division.

Neil was sacked towards the end of that season, with Daniel Farke taking over to begin the 2017/18 campaign. Naismith started just twice under the new German boss, both in defeats, before an ankle ligament injury put an end to his time at Carrow Road, as he never got back into Farke's plans upon returning.

He spent a season and a half on loan back in the Scottish Premiership with Hearts, where he was able to rediscover the form that earned him a move to the Premier League back in 2012, and he signed a four-year deal with the Jam Tarts upon the expiration of his Norwich contract in 2019.

Norwich wound up being the side Naismith played for the least in his career. Playing just 48 times and scoring eight goals, the Scotsman cost the Canaries just over £1 million per goal he scored, and to lose him for free at the end of his contract cemented this transfer as a failure.