Michael Bailey Former Dutch under-21 international Maceo Rigters could be on his way back to Carrow Road as one of Norwich boss Glenn Roeder's first permanent transfer signings of the summer.

Michael Bailey

Former Dutch under-21 international Maceo Rigters could be on his way back to Carrow Road as one of Norwich boss Glenn Roeder's first permanent transfer signings of the summer.

The 24-year-old forward was drafted in by Roeder on an emergency loan deal towards the end of last season, but his early promise was extinguished by a hamstring injury he sustained in City's 2-1 defeat at Bristol City in March, after coming on as a substitute.

That injury prematurely ended his season, but the striker continued having treatment in the hope he would make a comeback before the end of the season.

And a source at the club revealed to the Evening News today that Blackburn are listening to offers for the striker, despite the fact Rigters signed on a four-year deal from NAC Breda last summer, providing they can recoup their original fee - believed to be somewhere between £350,000 and £500,000.

The fact Blackburn are said to be competing with Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur for the signature of £6m Espanyol winger Albert Riera, also seems to point Rigters in the direction of the Ewood Park exit.

Rigters had the opportunity to join Norwich last summer, when former manager Peter Grant was chasing the Dutchman's signature.

The striker opted to join Blackburn and try his hand at Premier League football instead, but the first season of his move did not work out as he would have hoped, making only two top flight appearances for Rovers.

Meanwhile, Burnley manager Owen Coyle says he will do everything to try to bring Scunthorpe striker Martin Paterson to Turf Moor, a transfer target for Canaries boss Glenn Roeder during the January transfer window.

Paterson is among five players Burnley have tabled offers for during the past fortnight but their initial approach for the 21-year-old Northern Ireland international, reported to be around £400,000, may have to be doubled to prize the striker away from Glanford Park.

“I think it's fair to say that Scunthorpe have confirmed our intentions regarding Martin Paterson. We are trying our best to bring him to Burnley and we want to agree a transfer fee with Scunthorpe,” Coyle told the Lancashire Evening Telegraph.

“We won't ever reveal in public how much we offer for a player, but if Scunthorpe say it's not enough, then we can do one of two things. We either increase our offer, or we turn our attentions elsewhere.

“He's a player I like. He's at a very good age and he's proved at this level that he can score goals.”

Sources close to Scunthorpe have suggested an offer of between £750,000 and £1m would be enough to secure Paterson's signature.

The striker scored 14 goals for the Iron last season and was the subject of an approach by Roeder in January, when a reported offer of £850,000 was turned down by the Scunthorpe board.

And although financially secure, a similar bid from Roeder this summer would, in all likelihood, be enough to bring Paterson to Carrow Road.

If all this seems familiar, it is because last summer saw the Canaries involved in negotiations with Scunthorpe to sign their previous leading scorer Billy Sharp for £2m, before Sheffield United pipped City to his signature.