USMNT star Josh Sargent at the centre of Gareth Bale-esque transfer saga as Norwich wait on ‘big money’ bids for 16-goal striker

Despite being forced to sit out several games through injury, at various points of the season, Sargent was able to post a personal-best goal return of 16 efforts for the Canaries in 2023-24. Those exploits have not gone unnoticed, with the 24-year-old said to be attracting Premier League interest.

Norwich’s failure to progress through the play-offs has left them vulnerable, with star turns always going to attract unwelcome attention. Sargent is far from being the first to find himself in such a position, with former Real Madrid star Bale lured away from Tottenham in 2013 as the north London giants looked to reinvest the funds that he generated across several deals.

Norwich may decide to do the same when it comes to Sargent, with Norfolk native and former Canaries defender Danny Mills telling Football League World: “I think we all know that finances are incredibly tight at most football club. We even see it in the Premier League with some incredibly wealthy owners. It's the nature of football. Sometimes you have to sell to rebuild, and sometimes you have to sell your stars to refinance the rest of the team. You can sell one player and bring four in, and sometimes that's just a good business model. It's what you have to do.

“Obviously, he was one of their better players last season, one of their standouts, and if you can command a big fee sometimes, you have to sacrifice that. Spurs did it with Gareth Bale back in the day. They spent the money really badly and brought in 11 players that didn't work. But that's the sort of way sometimes you have to go. You have to sell a player for big money, and if you can bring in three or four off the back of that, you end up with a better balanced team and more chance of going for it and getting promotion. I think all clubs will be looking at their recruitment. Who can they bring in and at what price? Because we all know that the championship and the EFL is certainly not awash with cash.”

Norwich have Sargent tied to a contract through to 2028, meaning that they are under no pressure to sell and can demand the highest possible fee. It remains to be seen whether a player currently away on international duty at the 2024 Copa America expresses a desire to move on and step back up the league ladder in England.