Norwich City’s Ivo Pinto and Max Aarons have both been linked with other clubs.
Norwich City’s likely sale of right-back Ivo Pinto this month would suggest the club will have no interest in selling prized asset Max Aarons – even if a Premier League club come in with a telling bid.
Manager Daniel Farke told reporters for the Eastern Daily Press on Friday that Pinto is in Turkey to tie up a move with top-flight side MKE Ankaragucu, with the player already in attendance their mid-winter training camp.
“Yes, it is true. Ivo is in talks with a club in Turkey. It is not done yet and we are quite relaxed about this situation. He was my captain and of course his situation was a bit difficult because he lost his position more or less to an 18-year-old in Max Aarons,” Farke explained to the Eastern Daily Press.
While losing Pinto would make Norwich’s first-team squad lighter in terms of numbers, his likely exit is surely good news for supporters at Carrow Road as it sends a strong message in respect of Max Aarons.
Aarons has established himself as the club’s number one right-back this season, making 22 Championship starts and contributing with two goals and three assists.
While there is work to be done on his defensive game, as Aarons’ – inexperience sometimes leaves him out of position – but he averages 1.7 tackles per game (Whoscored), and he is without doubt one of the most exciting attacking fullbacks outside the Premier League. And his performances seemingly haven’t gone unnoticed.
According to a report in the Mirror, both Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur are keen on the player – with the latter said to be in the box-seat, after repeatedly sending scouts to watch him in action.
The Mirror report claims Norwich rate Aarons at £15 million, but with Pinto looking likely to leave, the Canaries surely wouldn’t entertain the idea of selling him now, and leaving the team short for the remainder of their promotion push, as finding a direct replacement this month for a reasonable price would be a near-impossible task.
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