Hoolahan's Transfer Woes

Hoolahan Transfer Saga

Should he stay or go?

Wes Hoolahan
source: the sun

Wesley Hoolahan has been at Norwich City since 2008 and since then has seen the sharpest rise in the clubs fortunes in recent history. He has been a pivotal member of the squad throughout the Paul Lambert era and has remained as a talisman of the club throughout the so far unsuccessful Chris Hughton era. He is perhaps one of the players left at the club, alongside Russell Martin who can remind the Carrow Road faithful of the fantastic three seasons which saw them rise from the lowly depths of league one to the soaring heights of the premier league with back to back promotions.

Questions now arise as to why he would launch such a foul-mouthed attack on the club which has seemingly served him so well. As a footballer I can only imagine you can be seeking a balance with your career, a good wage, stability and a good relationship with your fans. Whilst we don't know what goes on behind the scenes it would appear that Hoolahan had it all and, when reaching the twilight of his career it raises serious questions to what has caused this outburst.

First reactions could point to the relationship with the manager. Hughton has failed to instil Hoolahan as a first team member and has used him sporadically over the course of the season. He has also, to mine and many fans disbelief, played Hoolahan continually out of position and has put him in what I and many others perceive to be positions which highlight the weaknesses in his game rather than play to his strengths. Pace and power have never been attributes you would come to expect from Hoolahan, rather deft skills, creative passing and weaving runs. So, why was Hughton so intent on playing him as a flat CM or LM where his strengths lie in playing CAM.

Other high profile Norwich players from the Paul Lambert era have expressly said the reason they left was due to Hughton's lack of positivity with his tactics and his reluctance to venture further than a rigid 4-5-1 or the occasional 4-2-3-1. It will have come as a shock to many of these players who have been used to season after season of dropping all structure and going all out for the win, and more often than not succeeding. 

The Hoolahan saga has however, served as a timely reminder to players that the club still holds a degree of power. Over past seasons we've seen numerous high profile players leave due to the promise of a better contract, or holding their present club to ransom for want of a pay rise. Yet, Norwich have stuck to their guns and maintained that Hoolahan is not for sale and that he shall remain a Norwich player until the club say otherwise. The effects of this decision remain to be seen, so we as Norwich fans have to hope this does not have a detrimental effect on the rest of the team and their bid for premier league survival. Failure to stay up could see a dash for the exit for a large number of current City stars so we have to pray that as a team they can get past their issues and start getting some points on the board.