It is in the attack that Norwich probably need the least work. Pukki will be first choice striker with Cantwell and Buendia behind him (should they stay). Dowell finished the season in strong form and looks like someone who will be able to step up to the Premier League next season.
All that is lacking from Norwich’s attack is a wide player who has pace and a strong eye for goal. Onel Hernandez is coming off a poor, although injury disrupted, season and Placheta is yet to show he can effectively utilise his pace in a Farke team. It would also be good if any wide player coming in can play as a up-top also to relieve the pressure on Pukki.
Signing a dedicated backup striker seems a luxury that Norwich will struggle to afford this summer and while a strike force of Pukki, Idah and Hugill does not scream ‘Premier League’ it is hard to see spending millions of a transfer budget of a player who will largely remain on the bench. To even sign a player of similar ability to Idah you would expect a fee of around at least £5m with no guarantee the player will offer a huge amount of value to the team.
Below are four players who offer interesting, and different, options from out wide.
Kaoru Mitoma; 23; Kawasaki Frontale; Wide Forward
Kaoru Mitoma has taken the J-League by storm the last couple of seasons and is probably only still playing in Japan due the pandemic. The 2020 J-League season saw Mitoma make his debut and quickly become a key part of Kawasaki’s title win. He ended that season with 13 goals and 10 assists, 1.1 goal contributions per 90 mins in, what is worth repeating, his debut season. 2021 has so far seen him slow down a little, although he is still scoring at a rate of a goal every other game.
Mitoma is yet to receive a call up to the Japan National Team, mainly as he is being prioritised to play in the U23s in preparation for the Olympics. In a recent friendly against the Argentina U23 team he was highlighted as such a danger man he was closely man-marked and would find himself up against 3 opponents as they looked to nullify him (see below). This largely worked for Argentina, although Mitoma still managed to hit a couple of shots and create chances for teammates when he could escape the close attention he was receiving.
One of Mitoma’s main strengths is his ability to beat an opponent in a 1v1, he tends to do so by using his pace as well as clever body positioning rather than clever tricks or flicks. While being right footed, he is also comfortable with his left, and will happily take on opposing fullbacks by going either inside or outside to add unpredictability to his attacks.
He demonstrates good composure on the ball, when considering he is only in his 2nd season of playing, and often makes good decisions with the ball and with his shot locations (see image).
Statsbomb identified Mitoma to be a ‘doppelganger’ of Son Heung-Min (although statistically not necessarily in playstyle). There are some similarities in the two though, especially in coolness in front of goal and ability to break quickly on the transition. Mitoma obviously has some way to develop before he is at Son’s level especially as he is now at the same age Son was when he moved to Tottenham.
While Mitoma has nearly only ever featured from the left wing, which clearly suits his style, he does show good off the ball movement and makes intelligent runs to suggest he could be coached to operate as a central striker, especially in a team which doesn’t expect its striker to hold up the ball or play with their back to goal.
Unfortunately, like Ao Tanaka in Pt 2, there are issues with work permit and requirement to appear in the Olympics. It may be that Mitoma sees out the rest of the season in Japan (which runs a summer season) and then gets his move to Europe in January. Mitoma certainly has all the ability to make his mark outside of the J-League and if he maintains his current trajectory his ceiling could be very high.
Mehdi Zerkane; 21; Bordeaux; Right Winger
(Since I wrote this, Norwich along with Aston Villa have actually been linked with Zerkane)
A product of the excellent Monaco academy, Zerkane has had a breakthrough debut season with Bordeaux. His form has also been recognised internationally with him receiving a call-up to the Algerian national team. He is also the first of 3 players currently on Ligue 1 on this list as it is likely to be fertile ground for Premier League teams this season.
Zerkane isn’t a traditional winger in the sense he will look to dribble past opponents to create chances, his main strength is being an excellent passer of the ball and often builds attacks from deeper positions. Being predominantly left footed Zerkane will drift into more central positions from the right to look to influence the game and create overloads.
Due to dropping deeper to gain possession he creates more time on the ball for himself and will look to make driving runs at opposition defences when the opportunity allows. Standing at 6ft 1"* he has a slightly gangly appearance but this hides an elegant footballer who can dictate play.
His shot locations show how he likes to come into central positions, but probably needs to work on getting into more dangerous areas, although he currently takes fairly good decisions when shooting, with an average xG per shot of 0.12, but he could look to avoid more speculative efforts from range.
In defence Zerkane is a hard worker and has some of the best numbers in Ligue 1 when compared to other wingers for pressing and winning possession, he should maybe win more headers for a player of his height but at only 21 he has scope to strengthen up.
Zerkane has recently signed a contract extension that lasts until 2024 as Bordeaux look to protect their asset. Financial trouble in Ligue 1 may mean his price tag is reduced from what it would have been without a pandemic but there may be strong competition for his services. Overall I’d say he certainly has the profile of a Farke player, good in possession and intelligent with the ball but the risk is he would offer little variation to the existing players at Norwich and he is unlikely to be able to oust Emi Buendia for the right wing berth. There could be potential to convert Zerkane more into a 10 and replace a potential outgoing player Marco Stiepermann.
(* There is conflicting information online about his height, but just watching him you can see he isn’t 5ft 8" as some websites have him listed as.)
Stephy Mavididi; 22; Montpellier; Wide Forward/Striker
A name well known in England due to going from a loan at League 1 Charlton and not being offered a contract at Arsenal to signing for Juventus, although only going on to make one appearance in Italy. From Juve he has moved to France, initially a loan a Dijon then a full transfer to Montpellier in 2020.
Mavididi fits very neatly into the category of a player who can do roles both as a striker and as a wide forward. Initially trained as a striker it wasn’t until recently that Mavididi has moved onto the left wing, and it is a move that has suited him well.
In the current season to date he has scored 9 goals off 6.4xG. Chances tend to come at the far past when attacks are built up down the right side of the pitch, using good movement to find space in dangerous areas. At 6ft tall Mavididi can offer a physical presence that most wide men do not have. This can be especially effective as many teams opt for smaller, more agile full backs.
Where Mavididi needs improvement is his ability to create chances for other players. He’s only totalled a 0.68 xA so far this season, and sets up less than 1 shot per game for team mates. With Farke using his wide players to create the majority of Norwich’s chances, this would seem to not particularly fit in with the way Norwich play, although Mavididi would be a very different type of wide player to everything else Norwich have on their books so far.
Potential to be a good alternative, but Farke has shown that he doesn’t really deviate from his style which might mean there isn’t a place for a player like Mavididi at Norwich.
Éric Ebimbe; 20; Dijon FCO (on loan from PSG); Winger
A more classic wide player, Ebimbe has pace in abundance and most importantly uses it effectively. It is probably possible to create a highlight reel purely made up of him knocking the ball past his opponent and running onto it. There is a lot of rawness in Ebimbe’s game at the moment, but he has shown he can be an effective counter attacking outlet and also works hard in tracking back and counter pressing.
A predominantly right footed player he has mainly been deployed on the right wing, but also played on the left hand side to be able to cut inside. At just under 6ft Ebimbe is of a good stature and can pose a threat from set pieces. He even made a few appearances in central midfield due to his tireless work rate in disrupting opposition play.
1 goal from an xG of 4 so far this season suggests he needs to improve of his composure in front of goal, but also shows he is someone capable of getting into good positions. There are a lot of similarities between Ebimbe and a young Nathan Redmond, both the good and the bad. His passing is good when in less advanced positions, but can struggle to make an impact in the final third. However, he does well at creating shooting chances from dribbling and with 2.45 successful take-ons per game he is one of the highest rated players in this metric in Ligue 1.
Dijon had agreed a €4m fee for Ebimbe as part of the loan, but with them being relegated from Ligue 1 it is considered unlikely they will take the option, or that the player will want to drop to Ligue 2. There is reported interest in Germany for the player as he has stood out in a poor team and it may be possible that PSG will be able to receive a fee larger than the agreement with Dijon they made in the summer of 2020. With careful coaching Ebimbe could become a impactful attacker and at only 20 he has plenty of chance to improve. How high his overall level can be is unclear, but after a successful loan spell at Dijon he looks a good pick up if the price is right.
Honorable mentions
Nantes’ Moses Simon has blistering pace and an eye for goal. He can be inconsistent in his play and drift in and out of games though and maybe lacks in diligence when carrying out his defensive duties.
Ritsu Doan who is on loan to Arminia in the Bundesliga from PSV has had a very good season after struggling in his first season in Holland for his parent club. In fact his season has been so good PSV are likely to want him back in their team for next season, or a transfer fee in excess of €10m.
Young Mexican striker Eduardo Aguirre has been impressing for Santos Laguna in the Liga MX, but potential work permit issues as well as gathering attention from clubs in Spain means he is probably an impossible transfer.
