Football League World
·3 April 2024
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·3 April 2024
With Norwich City chasing promotion back to the Premier League, David Wagner was hesitant to make wholesale changes to his squad in January.
As a result, he brought in just one new signing, striker Sydney van Hooijdonk on loan from Bologna
The Dutch forward has struggled to make an impact, though, with Norwich's frontline firing on all cylinders.
Josh Sargent and Jon Rowe have been in fine form for the Canaries and it's been hard for van Hooijdonk to stake a claim for a starting berth.
The Dutch forward has played just seven games for Norwich, and it's unlikely the club will pursue a permanent deal for him in the summer.
This leaves Norwich in a predicament regarding the future of Adam Idah, the academy graduate who has excelled on loan at Celtic since his January move.
With Norwich unlikely to want to bring van Hooijdonk in on a permanent deal, they may be unwilling to sanction a permanent move away for Idah, despite the Irish forward struggling for game time at Norwich.
With Idah having left for Celtic in January after struggling to nail down a starting spot, van Hooijdonk has found similar issues.
Sargent has been a dependable source of goals all season, netting 14 times in the Championship, and attracting Premier League interest from Brentford.
It's therefore been difficult for van Hooijdonk to displace the American as Norwich approach the end of the season chasing promotion.
Van Hooijdonk has yet to start a game and has been limited to minutes off the bench, and this is unlikely to change.
The 24-year-old was in and out of the side at Bologna and has yet to play regular minutes all season. Wagner has therefore been left concerned about the striker's fitness levels, and with Sargent in such good form, it seems an unnecessary risk to start trusting van Hooijdonk.
Van Hooijdonk was handed a start for Norwich's U21s in the hope of building his match fitness during the international break, but he's since been left on the bench for Norwich's last two Championship fixtures.
Idah has been at Norwich his whole career, and after fleeting minutes in the Premier League, it was expected that he would make a telling impact back in the Championship.
Under Wagner, though, he has fallen down the pecking order, and despite scoring six goals for the Canaries, he was resigned to minutes off the bench and, as a result, left for Celtic in January.
Idah has enjoyed his brief stint in Scotland, scoring five goals and laying on two assists in just eight games for Brendan Rodgers's side.
The Hoops are in pole position to retain their league title, with Idah having made an instant impact at the club.
Van Hooijdonk's limited impact suggests Norwich are unlikely to negotiate a permanent deal for the Dutch striker, and thus Idah looks set to remain at Norwich this summer unless van Hooijdonk's fortunes change.