Norwich City chasing Sporting CP transfer agreement as stance revealed | OneFootball

Norwich could be settling on a goalkeeper purchased by the Portuguese giants Sporting Clube last summer, but who may be available on favourable terms.

Norwich City's hunt for a new goalkeeper is settling on Sporting CP's Vladan Kovačević and the Portuguese giants are willing to listen to offers, according to reports.

Norwich are in the process of an extensive rebuilding job at Carrow Road this summer, with Liam Manning having replaced Johannes Hoff Thorup, who was sacked in April, earlier in June.

And one of the most important jobs facing Manning is the search for more goalkeeping cover. Norwich confirmed on their retained and released list that they would not be offering Angus Gunn a new contract, and so the search is now on for a replacement.

Following Gunn's departure, Norwich have two goalkeepers in the form of Dan Grimshaw and Louie Moulden, but a third will be needed for a 46-game season; for cover if nothing else.

Norwich City eyeing Vladan Kovačević transfer

According to a report by the Pink 'Un, the Canaries may be about to settle on Vladan Kovačević of Sporting Club, the freshly-crowned Portuguese champions. They report that Kovačević has been told by Sporting that he is surplus to requirements in Lisbon and that they are open to offers for the 27-year-old Bosnian.

Furthermore, it could well be that the goalkeeper is available on terms that are agreeable to Norwich. As per the report, Sporting are open to considering another potential loan move away from the club with a buy option included.

But there is one small word of warning, too. They report that Kovačević is likely to fall just short of the 15-point threshold to qualify for a UK work permit, though they add that City have at least two slots available this summer to sign players who do not amass enough points.

Kovačević is highly rated, but fell out of favour in Portugal

One thing that can be said about Vladan Kovačević is that he was highly-rated at the time that Sporting signed him. They paid the Polish club Raków Częstochowa £4.1 million for him in the summer of 2024, with a contract to run until 2029 and a release clause set at €60 million (£51.4 million).

But Kovačević has not been able to force his way into the first team at Sporting. He made just twelve appearances for them throughout the 2024-25 season in all competitions, and was sent on loan for the rest of the season to Legia Warsaw at the start of February 2025.

Norwich had previously been connected with Leicester goalkeeper Jakub Stolarczyk, and he has the advantage of counting as a home-grown player, but while moving for him would preserve a precious UK work permit slot, the availability of Kovačević will hold an obvious appeal to Norwich, especially on terms that are favourable to them.

It is, of course, expected that any transfer fee payable for the goalkeeper would be set at a tiny fraction of that enormous release clause.