CHRIS LAKEY Glenn Roeder says it's a case of "you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours" as he rebuilds Norwich City's ailing squad.The Canaries boss believes if a loan deal works out then everyone's a winner - the player, his club and, most importantly of all, the Canaries.

CHRIS LAKEY

Glenn Roeder says it's a case of "you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours" as he rebuilds Norwich City's ailing squad.

The Canaries boss believes if a loan deal works out then everyone's a winner - the player, his club and, most importantly of all, the Canaries.

One-time West Ham manager Roeder recalls how it worked at Upton Park, when a whole host of budding international talent was sent out to lower division sides to hone their hunger and build up their physiques.

"At West Ham it is a policy - every one of those top players that came through, Rio Ferdinand, Lampard - Joe Cole was the only one who didn't - Defoe, Carrick, Johnson. Every one of them went out on loan as soon as they were old enough. Out they went on loan to all sorts of places, but they went away young men and they came back men, experienced young men, and you could see the difference playing first team football had on them.

"It changed them, it toughened them up in terms of not being in a second team environment any more, where you are playing for points you are playing for money and it is all very important.

"I think it is the right thing to do with young players - if they are not playing week in, week out, get them out on loan, get them playing first team football, and then bring them back and you will see a completely different player."

Roeder (pictured) has brought in central defender Martin Taylor, out of favour at Birmingham, and Matty Pattison, a midfielder who is facing a similar trying to convince Sam Allardcye that he is worth a place in his Newcastle team.

It was Roeder who gave Pattison his debut at Newcastle in a managerial era where he once spent £15m in the space of a month on signing Damien Duff from Chelsea and Obafemi Martins from Inter Milan.

Now, 15 months later, he's working on a very different budget, but says the blueprint is very different.

"You don't have to have £10m and £5m players to be successful in the Championship, you know that anyway so you are not looking in that market at all," he said.

"You look at successful teams in the Championship and try and look at the makeup of their squads. Then you look at your own squad and you can see the weaknesses.

"I can see clearly when I look at Watford's, West Brom's squads to name two - and not just the technical ability, but the physical presence they have in those two squads - and I look at my own squad and there is a big difference in the three squads, the two at the top and the one at the bottom and I need to alter that.

"We do need some physical presence in the squad, some strength, some power, which teams at the top have.

"The fact of the matter is the standard in the Premiership nowadays, especially at clubs like Newcastle and upwards, is so great compared to the standard in the Championship. Watford proved that - Watford are not running away with the Championship but they are almost certainties to go back up and they have this power and pace in the side which is serving them well in the Championship. They had that last year, but it wasn't enough in the Premiership because the Premiership is full of athletes as well who are technically very gifted.

"So they handled that and then they add the technical ability."