Josh Sargent told Norwich 'don't know how to replace him' by own manager after USMNT striker wins Championship Player of the Month award

United States international Sargent spent much of the summer generating exit talk at Carrow Road. He was linked with teams in the Premier League and across Europe, with plenty of top-flight outfits reportedly willing to take a punt on the 25-year-old.

The window closed, though, with no deal being done and Sargent has - on the back of netting five goals through six appearances at the start of the 2025-26 campaign - being named Championship Player of the Month for August.

He has said of that honour: "I'm really happy and proud to receive this award. For sure, there has been a lot of noise during the recent months, but I've been fully focussed on doing everything I can to help the team here.

"I'd like to thank everyone at the club, but especially my team-mates, for their support. We're excited for the season ahead and we must now continue to build on some of our recent performances."

Norwich boss Liam Manning is understandably delighted to still have Sargent at his disposal, telling reporters of keeping a prized asset in Norfolk: "I don’t know how you replace him, to be honest, in terms of when you look at his levels as a player and what he brings in the changing room from a leadership perspective.

"He knows the group, he knows the club, he knows the area, he is settled. I think that you lose that, you’re naturally replacing someone that doesn’t know all those things and isn’t settled.

"So I think there’s so many factors - him as a pro, as a player and the fact that he knows the club and settled in, is loved by the fans. I think it is a huge thing for us to be able to do. And I also think it is credit to the people above me in terms of the work that was done to keep him. I think in terms of creating the right culture of making sure that we did everything we can. It’s a great bit of business for us to be able to keep him."

Norwich have Sargent tied to a contract through to 2028, so were never under any pressure to sell. They have seen their highly-rated No.9 register 31 goals across the last two seasons, with personal bests being posted along the way.