Norwich City are laughing hardest at Celtic after dodging transfer bullet | OneFootball

Norwich City signed Mohamed Toure for £2.6 million amid previous interest in Kasper Hogh, who recently joined Celtic for £11 million

Norwich City will be targeting at least a play-off finish under Belgian boss Philippe Clement this campaign, with their attacking options key to their hopes of making a potential return to the Premier League, as the Canaries dodged a big transfer bullet at Celtic's expense to sign a real gem last January.

Since Clement took charge at Carrow Road following the dismissal of Liam Manning, Norwich have been on a steady upward trajectory.

The Belgian has been backed in both of the transfer windows he has undertaken thus far, as this summer saw the arrival of Sam Field for a potential £2.8 million from Queens Park Rangers after a successful loan spell, Andre Brooks for £8 million from Sheffield United, and Anthony Musaba on loan from Fenerbahçe.

Whilst the former Monaco and Rangers boss will be hoping for a positive impact from each of his summer recruits, the 52-year-old must still love one particular addition he made to the squad last January, with a deal very nearly not being done for one key reason.

Norwich City were interested in Kasper Hogh prior to Mohamed Toure's addition

Action Images

By the time January 2026 rolled around, Clement had overseen an upturn in form at Carrow Road, but injury problems ravaged his squad, and USMNT striker Josh Sargent was angling for a move away from the club.

A deal worth over £20 million with MLS side Toronto was agreed, as suddenly, aside from Jovon Makama, Norwich were incredibly light in the centre-forward role.

Interest in Bodø/Glimt's Danish striker Kasper Høgh emerged, with the forward having enjoyed a prolific spell in Norway's Arctic Circle, with 54 goals and 22 assists in 103 games across all competitions.

However, at the time, the Norwegian side was competing in the group stage of the Champions League, with Høgh netting in consecutive victories over Manchester City and Atlético Madrid, as all of a sudden, a move to Norwich appeared off the cards.

The Canaries were forced to look elsewhere late on, a set of circumstances few will now argue didn't work out for the best.

Mohamed Toure has proven to be an excellent piece of business for Norwich City

Action images

With Høgh proving to be unattainable, Norwich had no choice but to look elsewhere to source their Sargent replacement, and landed in Denmark, striking a deal worth an initial £2.6 million with Randers for the signature of Australian striker Mohamed Toure.

Toure, 21 at the time of his arrival, came through the ranks of Adelaide United, and first landed on European shores with French outfit Reims, before spells with Paris FC and Randers would follow.

Toure scored just 12 goals in 48 appearances across all competitions for the Danish side, but would score nine and assist three in less than 600 minutes across 11 Championship appearances in the second half of last season for Norwich, including hat-tricks against Oxford United and Bristol City.

The Aussie has five goals and one assist in seven games across all competitions already this season, as Norwich have found their heir to Sargent and then some, and for a fee of just £2.6 million, have surely dodged a bullet in not signing Høgh.

Kasper Hogh has had an inconsistent start to life at Celtic since his £11 million switch from Bodo/Glimt

Action images

After Bodø crashed out of the Champions League, Høgh continued to score prolifically in the league for the club, as though Norwich's interest had died down, interest as a whole hadn't.

Celtic were on the hunt for a new star centre-forward after Daizen Maeda left for Ipswich Town, and agreed to part ways with £11 million to bring the Dane to Glasgow.

With just three goals in seven appearances across all competitions so far for the Bhoys, Høgh has not had a nightmare start to life at Parkhead by any means, but has yet to prove he is worth that eight-figure investment.

It would take some remarkable form for Norwich to regret their decision to sign Toure instead, as barring any major shifts in form, the Canaries have certainly got the better of the two deals.

Philippe Clement must be laughing at how the deals for Mohamed Toure and Kasper Høgh transpired

Action images

Had Norwich signed Høgh instead of Toure, there are few reasons to believe the Dane would have been a bad signing overall, as he may well have had an even greater impact than the Aussie.

However, in terms of value for money, Høgh would need to display some incredible form over the next couple of years if Celtic want to recoup most of that £11 million fee, whereas Toure is almost guaranteed to make the Canaries a huge profit in the event of any sale in the near future.

Time will ultimately see who got the better of those two deals, though it would be a huge surprise if it wasn't Norwich, who must be laughing at Celtic's expense.