Jose Cordoba's future at Norwich City amid World Cup call-up - 'we need to keep him' | OneFootball

FLW's Norwich fan pundit has given his verdict on potential transfer interest in Jose Cordoba this summer

Norwich City had a strong end to the season under Philippe Clement despite missing out on the play-off places.

Most of the damage was done in the first half of the term prior to the Belgian’s arrival as head coach.

The Canaries were in relegation danger, but rose back up the Championship table to finish ninth and just eight points adrift of the top six.

One player who was key to their turnaround in form was Jose Cordoba, who started all bar one of their last 17 games of the campaign, with the team winning on 10 occasions and drawing two.

The centre-back earned plaudits for his performances, and will now get to feature this summer at the World Cup for Panama after being selected in their 26-man squad.

This will be the country’s second ever appearance at the tournament after qualifying in 2018, and they will face Croatia and Ghana, as well as England once again.

Jose Cordoba transfer fear claim

When asked whether he’s afraid a good World Cup showing could lead to transfer interest in Cordoba, FLW’s Norwich fan pundit Zeke Downes claimed that it could only be a good thing if he performs well and gets some attention.

He believes it would be a sign of how well the club have done in their recruitment and in player development for any of their players to receive high-profile interest after the World Cup, suggesting he is more concerned about any potential injury issues.

“I think it’s only a positive if our players perform well at the World Cup, and then have interest from other clubs,” Downes told Football League World.

“Both to sort of show that we’re doing a good job with recruitment and player development, but also to increase the market value of our squad and of our players, if we need to let them go at some point, which I would imagine we aren’t going to.

“I think in order to stake a claim at the top of the league, I think we need to be keeping hold of our best players, and Cordoba will be one of the first names on the team sheet.

“I think as long as he does well, but not too well, hopefully he isn’t one of the standouts of the tournament and hopefully he stays fit because that’s much more important.

“We definitely need to keep him, he’s fantastic.”

Cordoba made the switch to Norwich from Levski Sofia in the 2024 summer transfer window, and he’s cemented himself as a key part of the team in his two seasons at the club so far.

Clement will be hoping that he can have a good showing at the World Cup before returning to Carrow Road for a promotion push in the next campaign.

The centre-back is likely to return late for pre-season as a result of competing in North America this summer, but it shouldn’t prove too much of a stumbling block in his preparations for the next term.

Norwich haven’t competed in the Premier League since 2022, and the expansion of the play-offs to include the top eight will offer the Norfolk outfit further encouragement that they can challenge for a place back in the top flight.

Cordoba still has a contract until June 2028, giving him two years left on his deal.

Norwich have momentum on their side this summer

Norwich were one of the form sides in the Championship in the final weeks of the campaign, and that has led to a lot of optimism about next season.

Cordoba has earned his chance at the World Cup, and he will get to face some familiar faces to a lot of Canaries’ supporters as he will be playing against Thomas Tuchel’s England side on 27 June.

He was an important part of Clement’s side enjoying a strong run of form, and it wouldn’t come as a surprise if it led to transfer interest in the summer.