‘Only go when the time is right’ - ex-City man’s advice to starlets

Norwich City’s youngsters have been urged to think carefully about the next moves in their careers as the Premier League vultures continue to circle.

Whilst the Canaries hope to resume their battle to stay in the Premier League in the near future, several of their young stars will know top-flight futures await regardless of what happens between now and the end of the season.

The likes of Max Aarons, Todd Cantwell, Ben Godfrey, Jamal Lewis and Emi Buendia have all been linked with big money moves but Norwich City Hall of Famer David Phillips believes each starlet must be wise in choosing the next step in their career.

“You have got to be very careful whenever you’re thinking of moving clubs,” said Phillips, who spent four years at Carrow Road during his career. “There are five or six players at Norwich that are very much going to be in demand. Daniel (Farke) will want to keep hold of all of them I’m sure but will know that if someone offers a lot of money then some will leave.

“Ultimately it will come down to what clubs come in for them and how much they are offering. But the players would be wise to look at someone like James Maddison. He left Norwich when he was 21 and you could see he was ready for it.”

Phillips who forged a successful coaching career at Coventry City’s academy later in his career is impressed at how Norwich are already keeping one eye on the future with the purchase of Sam McCallum, who signed for City from the Sky Blues in January before being loaned back to Mark Robins’ side.

“Norwich do things the right way and they are already investing in the future – they have got a really excellent player in Sam McCallum,” he said. “That shows to me that if someone like Jamal (Lewis) was to move on then Sam is instantly ready to come in and do a very good job for them.

“He is a very talented boy and the latest to come out of a system at Coventry that’s produced players like Maddison and Callum Wilson in recent years.”