Norwich City hit big transfer jackpot for £0 - huge profit followed | OneFootball

Norwich City signed Borja Sainz for free before selling the Spaniard for £14.25 million just two years later

Norwich City signed Spanish attacker Borja Sainz on a free transfer in the summer of 2023, and after two seasons at Carrow Road, would be sold for a very healthy profit.

Having just finished 13th in their first season back in the Championship after relegation from the Premier League, Norwich were looking to learn from their mistakes and fire themselves up the table.

Under the watch of former Huddersfield Town boss David Wagner, who helped to guide the Terriers to the top flight on a limited budget, Norwich were forced to work under similar constraints, something which the German boss was familiar with.

In came the likes of Ashley Barnes, Danny Batth, Jack Stacey, and Adam Forshaw on free transfers to add a huge amount of experience to the Canaries' ranks, though the standout signing was undoubtedly that of Borja Sainz from Turkish side Giresunspor, also on a free transfer.

Sainz had struggled to make an impact in his native Spain for either Deportivo Alaves or Real Zaragoza, though in his only season in the Turkish top flight, the attacker scored nine and assisted four in 32 league games, though arrived in Norfolk as a relatively unknown quantity.

Borja Sainz joined Norwich City on a free transfer with a small reputation

Upon his arrival, the Spaniard would initially struggle to break into the Norwich team, but he would emerge as an integral figure during the second half of the 2023/24 campaign, scoring six and assisting twice in 33 league appearances as the Canaries missed out in the play-off semi-finals to Leeds United.

In his second campaign with Norwich, Sainz would explode into life. The Spanish attacker would score 14 and grab two assists in the first 18 games of the season, establishing himself as one of the league's most outstanding players.

This included hat-tricks in a 3-2 away win over Derby County and a 6-1 home victory against Plymouth Argyle, as well as an outstanding brace in a 3-3 draw at home to Middlesbrough.

However, after the first 18 games, where he clearly led the way as the top scorer in the Championship, Sainz would suffer a major drop-off in form, scoring just three and assisting twice for the remainder of the season, as Norwich too fell away from the play-off picture.

Though his early-season form had not gone unnoticed, rumours of a switch across the continent began to circulate as the summer window opened.

Indeed, Portuguese giants FC Porto submitted a £14.25 million bid for the Spaniard, which Norwich accepted, becoming the ninth most expensive sale in the club's history, behind Nathan Redmond to Southampton and ahead of Andrew Omobamidele to Nottingham Forest.

At 24, Sainz signed a five-year deal with the Portuguese giants, following the likes of Jonathan Rowe and Marcelino Nunez out of the Carrow Road doors.

Having only signed two years prior on a free transfer, Norwich certainly found a hit in the deal to bring Sainz to Norfolk.

The £14.25 million in pure profit that Norwich pocketed from the Sainz deal, by all accounts, was an excellent one.

Though the money was reinvested into the playing squad, many Canaries supporters will feel as though it wasn't invested wisely, with each of Mathias Kvistgaarden, Mirko Topic, and Papa Diallo all having struggled for a variety of reasons.

In his first season in the Portuguese top flight, Sainz has remained a regular in the side, as he aims to help his new side to a 31st top-flight title.

By almost every metric, the deal to sign and to sell Sainz was a successful one for Norwich, and it's something they surely hope to replicate again moving forward.