Jon Rowe’s potential departure from Norwich this month is “no concern” for David Wagner, as the young winger demonstrated at Hull why he is so highly regarded.
Rowe has apparently been courting interest from West Ham and Aston Villa and the 20-year-old upped his total for the season to a dozen in all competitions with a fantastic solo goal at the MKM Stadium.
Rowe first dispossessed Tyler Morton, then he ducked forward and slipped past a few players before launching an outside-of-the-boot shot that looped past Ryan Allsop and into the net.
Despite his recent outstanding performance, which helped Norwich win 2-1 and close the gap on the Sky Bet Championship play-offs to only two points and spots, Rowe’s profile may now rise.
However, Wagner responded, “I have no concern that there is any problems,” when asked how difficult it will be to hold onto Rowe during this transfer window.
The player’s entire performance, considering that it was only his first senior start in the season’s opening match in August—a match that the Canaries also won 2-1—impressed the Norwich boss.
“Clearly the goal was great, this is what he can produce,” Wagner continued. This has happened a couple times already this season. I really liked it, but I also thought his work and defence were excellent.
“He made a technically very clever defensive move and effort for the club. He did a great job of supporting his full-back; it was evident in his performance.
It becomes more intriguing when you take into account that he is still relatively young and that he started his first senior game at the beginning of the campaign.
After replacing Rowe in the closing minutes, Christian Fassnacht scored in the 88th minute, and Norwich held on for their first victory of 2024 despite Morton’s injury-time screamer setting up a thrilling finish.
Upon Hull’s fourth consecutive loss and the loss of an opportunity to climb into the top six, manager Liam Rosenior expressed his annoyance with referee Andrew Kitchen.
After swerving an arm at Lewie Coyle, Norwich defender Dimitrios Giannoulis was fortunate to escape a red card just before Rowe’s opening goal in the 36th minute. Aaron Connolly was replaced early due to a concussion.
Connolly was substituted after receiving medical attention following a collision with visiting custodian Angus Gunn, and Rosenior was particularly incensed that Norwich was given a free-kick as a result of the incident.
Rosenior stated: “It’s obvious that we have a free-kick, but I don’t sure if you can punish the custodian for coming out because they are both vying for the ball.
The fact that we were punished for that essentially captures my opinion of how this season’s officiating calls have favoured the opposition. His performance, in my opinion, benefited them in every facet of the match.
“They wanted to slow down the game and commit tactical fouls, and the referee bought every single one of our requests to play football and restart it.”
