Norwich City told they are "absolutely right" to keep player - Rangers have had long-standing interest | OneFootball

FLW's Norwich City fan pundit Zeke Downes is happy that Norwich City will be holding onto midfielder Kenny McLean for the 2025-26 season.

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Norwich City have been praised over their decision to keep hold of one of their most experienced players for their 2025-26 Championship season in Kenny McLean.

The 2025 summer transfer window has now come and gone, and one of the most fundamental truths about any transfer window is that holding onto the players you want to hold onto can be just as important as bringing in new faces.

Norwich have had a mixed start to the new season, with two wins and two defeats from their opening four matches. They brought in new players on transfer deadline day, bringing their total this summer to twelve overall, but behind the headlines generated by their new arrivals and the decision of Josh Sargent to stay at Carrow Road, the decision to hold onto midfielder Kenny McLean could turn out to be just as significant.

The 33-year-old had been linked with a possible move to Rangers, the club which he supports and where he started his youth career. But for all the gossip, that move didn't happen, even though McLean only has a year to run on his contract at Carrow Road.

"Absolutely the right decision" - Kenny McLean praised as he stays at Norwich City

Football League World have spoken to our Norwich City fan pundit, Zeke Downes, about the decision to keep McLean at the club, and Zeke is thrilled that the midfielder will be staying: "It was absolutely the right decision to keep McLean, especially now we've lost Nunez. There was a big improvement when McLean was on the pitch in the last couple of games, and he offers a lot of leadership."

Zeke feels that McLean has plenty to offer Norwich this season, including his considerable experience and a degree of versatility: "He is a fantastic servant, and he's got a lot of experience, so it's absolutely the right choice to keep him. Obviously he can also play at left-back if he needs to as well."

And while McLean may not be a regular starter for the Canaries this season, Zeke feels that McLean has qualities which will benefit the club just from him being around: "He might not start every game, but just to have him in the squad is going to be really useful. Even if he ends up running down his contract for nothing, I think that's a much better option."

Kenny McLean's decision to stay with Norwich will benefit the club in more ways than one

There had been considerable conjecture that Kenny McLean could be heading to Ibrox at the end of the summer transfer window, with reported interest in him from Wrexham, as well. Rangers were known to have had a long-standing interest in taking the player to their club, with the Scotland international quelling such rumours last year by signing a contract extension with Norwich in October.

But after Norwich's win at Blackburn, manager Liam Manning said: "I've had some really good chats with Kenny, and made it quite clear what I think of him and how I see him.

"He's a really important part of what we're trying to do here."

All of that indicated that a departure was far from a foregone conclusion. Transfer deadline day came and went without McLean leaving the club, so Manning's conversation with the player clearly had the desired effect.

Now 33, McLean first signed for Norwich City from Aberdeen in January 2018, though they loaned him to the Dons for the second half of the 2017-18 season. But in the seven years since then, he's become a mainstay of the Norwich team, running up 243 league appearances for the Canaries in both the Championship and the Premier League.

As he reaches the autumn years of his career, McLean's role will inevitably change, and the importance of his influence and the example that he sets younger players will be important around Carrow Road. Of the 30 players currently listed as Norwich's first team squad, ten are aged 21 or younger, and younger players will often look to older players for guidance and as role models, as well as the manager and the coaching staff.

McLean's contract expires next summer, so there remains a possibility that the player could leave the club for nothing at that point, though it's also worth remembering that Norwich also have an option to extend for another year at that point. For now, with the versatility and experience that he offers on the pitch, as well as the influence that he has within the dressing room, his decision to stay at Carrow Road feels like the right one for both him and Norwich.