DAVID CUFFLEY Nigel Worthington has not given up hope of making a deadline-beating signing as the midnight hour approaches. With the August transfer window closing at midnight, Worthington hinted that there could yet be a late addition to his senior squad.

DAVID CUFFLEY

City boss Nigel Worthington today said he had not given up hope of making a deadline-beating signing as the midnight hour approaches.

With the August transfer window closing tonight, Worthington hinted that there could yet be a late addition to his senior squad.

“At the moment, it's all quiet as far as anyone coming in or going out, but we will continue looking at things and you never know what will happen over the next four or five hours,” he said this morning.

So far, City have added just winger Lee Croft to their first-team pool since the end of last season, but Worthington has stressed he would still like to strengthen his squad. Earlier in the week he rated his chances of recruiting new faces as no better than “50-50”.

“I'm fairly happy with what I've got but I would still like to try to get in one or two new faces,” he said.

Blackburn's Finnish striker Shefqi Kuqi is unlikely to be one of them, however, despite reports suggesting City have joined West Bromwich Albion and Birmingham in their pursuit of the former Ipswich man.

“He's a player we like but he is not someone we have inquired about,” he said.

The option of loan signings remains after the transfer window shuts - although there is a “mini-window” for a week when no transfer business can be conducted.

“Seven days after today's deadline, we can look again at loan signings,” said Worthington - a ruling that still gives him time to bring in a new face before the trip to Coventry on Saturday week.

Meanwhile, defender Jürgen Colin has revealed he is beginning to feel like an old stager at Carrow Road - little more than a year after his arrival from PSV Eindhoven.

The 25-year-old Dutch right-back has played his full part in City's impressive start to the Coca-Cola Championship campaign and is determined to hold on to his place this time.

Colin admitted he found it hard to settle last season, suffering from a lack of fitness and confidence, and playing just once after the 4-0 defeat at Reading end of January.

But now he is revelling in the Canaries' new-found form.

He said: “I'm really settled now. I am a lot more settled than I was last year. It feels now like I've been at the club five or six years.”

He said a summer of hard work was now paying dividends.

“Fitness is a big thing but also the fact I had a full pre-season this time,” he told the club's official website. “When I came here last summer I didn't have a pre-season and found it hard when I was starting games. But this year I feel so much more comfortable.

“My fitness is good and I trained during the holidays with a friend of mine and he helped me a lot. We were doing running and general fitness work and things like that and he helped me a lot.

“I've come back to the club and I feel so good. You can always be better, but I feel like I'm in good shape.”

Colin has every chance to establish himself as first-choice right-back, especially as two potential rivals for the job are sidelined by injury.

Scotland Under-19 international Andrew Cave-Brown is out for several months with ankle ligament damage sustained in last week's Carling Cup tie at Torquay, while Matthieu Louis-Jean is still trying to regain fitness after almost a year on the sidelines with a hamstring injury.

Louis-Jean's latest comeback was cut short when he hobbled off with an ankle knock during Tuesday night's Combination match against Leyton Orient at Carrow Road.