Graham Dorrans could have been lining up against Norwich City in the Championship this season if Owls’ chief Carlos Carvalhal had got his way.

The Portuguese boss revealed he was keen on bringing the 30-year-old midfielder to Hillsborough before realising Dorrans had his heart set on a return to the club he supported as a boy.

The Canaries finally sanctioned Dorrans’ exit following a protracted summer stand-off with the Ibrox club for a fee believed to be in the region of £750,000.

Dorrans did have a chance to stay in England but linked up with the Glasgow club, who beat Sheffield Wednesday 2-0 on Sunday in a pre-season friendly.

“We looked at Dorrans but when I knew that Pedro (Caixinha) was interested I told him to take the player,” he said. “It’s true we were in for him but when I heard he was a Glasgow Rangers supporter I didn’t want to disturb Graham or Pedro. The player has a plan for his career and he wanted to play for Rangers.

“So when I knew this I spoke to Pedro and told him we wouldn’t be pursuing it. He wanted Dorrans a lot and the player wanted a long-term deal. I understood that so I didn’t fight for him. But he’s a top player and we definitely looked at him. We always look at the good players in the Championship and Dorrans was one of the best.”

Meanwhile, Dorrans’ former Norwich City club mate Michee Efete could be the latest member of City’s development squad set for a loan move, after featuring in a weekend trial match for Conference Premier Aldershot.

Shots’ boss Gary Waddock brought in a number of potential new recruits for Friday’s friendly against AFC Wimbledon.

“We all know we are looking at that area (defence) and the lads that came in, I thought they did well. Now I need to make a decision about what I do in terms of them,” Waddock told the getsurrey website. “We would like to thank Norwich City and Crawley Town for letting us have a look at their players. I will make some calls and make some decisions.”

Louis Ramsay, Carlton Morris and Ebou Adams have all been allowed to depart for loan stints in the early part of the coming season.