- A big summer lies ahead for Philippe Clement and Ben Knapper.
- The summer transfer window officially opens for business in June.
- Several Norwich players may have played their last game for the club.
Norwich City ended the 2025/26 Championship season with a disappointing 2-1 defeat to Hull City away from home on Saturday.
Focus will now turn to the summer transfer window and the business that Ben Knapper and Philippe Clement want to do to improve the squad for a promotion push next term.
We already know that Shane Duffy, Emi Marcondes, Jeffrey Schlupp, Dan Barden, and Tony Springett have played their last games for Norwich, as they will be released at the end of June.
They may not be the only players who do not make the cut for next season, though, and here are five current squad members who may have played their last games for the Canaries…
Mathias Kvistgaarden
Mathias Kvistgaarden came off the bench for the final eight minutes, plus stoppage time, against Hull and it may have been his final appearance for the club.
The Danish striker joined to play alongside Josh Sargent in a front two for Liam Manning last summer, but has found himself having to fill in as a lone centre-forward in a physical Championship under Clement.
He did not score in any of the final 13 matches of the season and could find himself far down the pecking order with Jovon Makama and Ante Crnac to return, as well as the club’s desire to sign a new striker.
Kvistgaarden’s situation is nothing more than unfortunate. He is a good player in the wrong situation, and deserves to get a good move to a team that plays a way to suit his talents next season.
A return of six goals and two assists in 40 appearances in all competitions for Norwich is not a horrendous return, but it also does not suggest that he is going to emerge as the main man for Clement.
Jakov Medic
Like Kvistgaarden, Jakov Medic is a player who suffered as a result of the change in management and a switch from a 3-4-2-1 to a 4-2-3-1 formation.
Playing in a back three or back four that wanted to sit back and soak up pressure suited Medic, due to his lack of mobility, more than the current set-up under Clement.
The Croatian powerhouse has given some good performances for the Canaries – Sheffield United away comes to mind – and we will always have that 30 minute centre-forward cameo.
Medic has played plenty of football in the top two tiers in Germany and it would be nice to see him get a move back to that country to get back to playing regular football.
His departure would then open the door for Norwich to sign a left-footed defender to provide competition to Jose Cordoba, with Harry Darling and Ruairi McConville competing on the right.
As is the case with Kvistgaarden, Medic is not a bad footballer and has played his part this season, but he does not look suited to the next chapter of Clement’s Norwich story.
Amankwah Forson
Amankwah Forson is in a curious position heading into the summer. There is genuine quality in his boots, as we saw recently against Derby and famously against Coventry last season, but it has not been shown consistently enough.
Clement has already confirmed that Norwich will be in the market for a right-sided winger in the summer, and the Canaries have Matej Jurasek and Crnac to return from injury.
When you then factor in that Paris Maghoma and Oscar Schwartau have also been preferred ahead of Forson at times, the Ghanaian winger may fail to make the squad when everyone is fit.
He has only started 15 out of 92 Championship games for Norwich and does not look primed to kick on again next season.
A move to a less physically demanding league that allows him to show off his technical quality more could benefit his development and help him to shine, which is why a summer move could be the right call for his career.
Sam Field
This may sound like an obvious one, given that Sam Field is only on loan at Norwich, but my prediction is that he will not be signed on a permanent deal.
The defensive midfielder has done a solid enough job during his time on loan from QPR, but he made it clear in January that he left the London club in search of more regular game time, which was available due to Pelle Mattsson’s injury.
Field has only played more than 45 minutes once in the last ten matches and has been an unused substitute three times in the last seven games.
The 27-year-old, who should be in the prime years of his career, is good enough to be starting week-in-week-out at a team lower in the table and may want to explore his options in the summer.
Norwich may also want to look for a player with a higher technical ceiling with a promotion push in mind, which could open the door for them to revisit their interest in former Championship title winner Glen Kamara.
Jack Stacey
This one feels like the biggest coin flip on this list. I could easily see Jack Stacey staying at Norwich and being a back-up to Kellen Fisher again.
However, there is also a world in which either the club want to sign an upgrade on him or Stacey decides to go and be a first-choice elsewhere.
He looks set to be second-choice to Fisher for a third successive season, only playing regularly recently due to a shortage of left-backs, and may want more for himself in the 2026/27 campaign.
Stacey was perfect for the way that Manning wanted to play, hence why he was given a new deal last summer, because the team was built to accommodate his defensive shortcomings and create space for him to exploit offensively with his brilliant athleticism and willingness to cross the ball.
In a Clement team, though, his lack of quality on the ball and his struggles with one-on-one defending have caused problems on the pitch.
His contract expires in the summer of 2027 and the upcoming window would be a good chance for the club to recoup a fee for a player they signed on a free transfer in 2023.
If he does leave, Stacey will get best wishes from most Norwich supporters because, despite some frustrating performances in recent seasons, he played a key role in the play-off finish under David Wagner.
