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New arrivals at Carrow Road may allow Brad Hills to once again excel on loan away from Norwich City

Norwich City's centre-back arrivals of Harry Darling and Jakov Medic mean that Liam Manning's side are well saturated at the back, which could spell disaster for Brad Hills' future at Carrow Road.

Medic and Darling add to the veteran defender Shane Duffy and José Córdoba, meaning that the Canaries have four solid centre-back options coming into the 2025/26 season.

And even if Manning operated with a back three at his new club, like he did at Bristol City, there's a chance that 20-year-old Ruairi McConville may be ahead of Hills in the pecking order, after Norwich paid an initial £1.25 million for the Northern Ireland international from Brighton in January, the same window which saw Hills loaned out to Stockport County.

The 21-year-old has shown over the past two seasons that he is progressing rapidly as a player, having adapted to League Two with Accrington Stanley in the 2023/24 campaign, and then becoming one of Stockport's more important players in their late-season push for promotion last term in League One.

Hills is ready to have a crack at the Championship, but if he's unable to get regular minutes at his parent club, it may be wise for Norwich to once again loan him out this summer.

Brad Hills needs regular football in the 2025/26 season

Brad Hills has been a regular for the Norwich youth squads since he arrived at the club, and has been on professional terms with the Canaries since 2021.

He extended his contract this time last year, meaning his current deal runs out at the end of next season. Currently, he is estimated to be earning £5,000 per week, per Capology.

Whilst there's no real rush for Norwich to get rid of Hills, the 21-year-old is simply too good to be a benchwarmer, and a 2025/26 campaign with limited minutes will only serve to stunt his growth after a solid season and a half of loan spells.

Last season, he joined a Stockport side midway through a promotion-challenging season, and his addition only served to better them towards the back end of the campaign, as the Hatters won 10 of the 16 league games he was involved in.

He won 1.75 tackles and 9.16 duels per 90 minutes in League One, and thus comes into 2025/26 with a whole host of momentum, which Norwich need to capitalise on, whether that's in their side or elsewhere on loan.

What cannot happen is what happened in the first half of last season, when Hills was a player on the fringes, failing to get off the bench in 15 separate Championship games and only making three league appearances.

Brad Hills' versatility could lead Norwich to keep him in 2025/26

However, saying that, there is a chance that Hills could be kept around by Liam Manning at least for the first half of the season, due to the 21-year-old's ability to slot into a few different positions in the back line.

Firstly, Hills showed that he could play centre-back in the back three last season whilst at Stockport, which Manning may like. But he was also an apt right-back whenever Dave Challinor switched to a back four.

Hills can adapt and be a reliable option no matter what direction and formation Liam Manning goes for next season, so keeping him around as a backup, similarly to how Johannes Hoff Thorup did for the first half of last season, could be a viable option.

Then, if Manning could afford to send the 21-year-old out on loan in January, having gone the first half of the season barely using him, he'd be free to do so easily.

However, whilst this could allow Hills the chance to become a regular at the club he came through the academy at, this surely wouldn't be the best choice if the promising defender was to progress even further next season.

Allowing Hills the opportunity on loan at another Championship side where he'd be sure of regular minutes has to be the decision taken by Manning this summer. Then, come 2026/27, the final year of his £5,000 per-week deal, he'd be ready to return to Carrow Road and earn yet another contract extension.