Norwich hopeful of Gibbs return

Norwich manager Glen Roeder has revealed that the Canaries hope to re-sign Kieran Gibbs on loan next season. Gibbs spent the second half of last season at Carrow Road making seven appearances. However, Roder admitted that he would have liked to have kept him longer, saying

Kieran Gibbs is a player for whom the season ended too soon, he was getting better by the week.

The Norfolk-based club have today announced that they have re-signed defender Ryan Bertrand on loan from Chelsea until January, with the Blues stating that they may eventually allow Norwich to extend it until the end of the season. Now they are hoping to repeat the trick with Gibbs

“I would like to think after Arsenal’s pre-season Arsene [Wenger] might like to let him come back here, we’ll have to wait and see.”

Roeder is a close friend of Wenger’s and the Frenchman may be keen to loan Gibbs out again. Kieran is currently with the England under-19s side preparing to travel to Czech Republic for the 2008 UEFA u-19 Championships which take place from July 14-26.

If he were to remain at the Emirates next season, Kieran may find his opportunities limited to the Carling Cup and occasional Premier League appearances. However, if he were to link up with Roeder again at Norwich he would be playing regularly and would develop both as a person and a player.

The only worry for Gunners’ fans is that Norwich could eventually try to land Gibbs on a permanent basis. Hopefully this will not happen but Arsenal will have to consider the consequences if they are to loan Kieran out again.

Big things expected of Rhys Murphy and Sanchez Watt

When it was announced on Tuesday that six Academy prospects had signed their first professional contracts at the club, the news of Henri Lansbury turning pro overshadowed the acheivements of the other five youngsters. But for Rhys Murphy and Sanchez Watt, this is the reward for years of hard work and next season they will be out to justify the Arsenal coaching staff’s decision.

The fact that these boys have been offered pro terms a year early goes some way to outline their potential, but it is up to them to fulfil it.

The news will come as a welcome lift for Murphy who experienced a frustrating campaign last season which was marred by injury. After impressing in 2006/2007 as a schoolboy scoring 17 goals in 21 games, he missed much of last season because of a hernia problem. Nonetheless, he returned to play a key role in the end of season run-in scoring five goals from ten starts overall including a purple patch in which he scored in three consecutive games. The striker, who represented England at last summer’s UEFA u-17 Championships, also scored his first goals for the reserves as he finished the season strongly. Next season will see him strive to become a reserve regular and some good performances could earn him a place in the Carling Cup squad the following season. If he can steer clear of injuries and perform well consistently then there’s no reason why he can’t reach the top.

As for Sanchez Watt well there’s not many other ways to describe him other than that he is a special player. He showed glimpses of his talent last season, scoring on his home reserve debut against Portsmouth and finding the net seven times in total for the under-18s. Comfortable on either wing as well as central-midfield there have been rumours circulating that Barcelona were tracking his progress and were considering making a bid for him. It remains to be seen what the coaches have planned for him next season. He will look to play regularly in the reserves but considering he has already trained with the first-team on numerous occassions he can’t be too far away from a first-team call up either.