Leeds United and Norwich City both lost out after 2013 Deadline Day deal: View | OneFootball

Leeds United and Norwich City both lost out after 2013 Deadline Day deal: View | OneFootball

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Football League World

·21 September 2024

Leeds United and Norwich City both lost out after 2013 Deadline Day deal: View

Article image:Leeds United and Norwich City both lost out after 2013 Deadline Day deal: View

Leeds and Norwich's 2013 swap deal involving Steve Morison and Luciano Becchio saw both sides lose out.

On Deadline Day 2013 Leeds United and Norwich City swapped strikers, with Luciano Becchio moving to Carrow Road and Steve Morison to Elland Road; it was a swap deal that failed to benefit either club.


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Leeds and Norwich agreed a winter Deadline Day swap deal that saw Becchio and Morison swap sides, as both players looked for a fresh start in their respective careers.

Becchio would be bringing a fantastic goal record with him to Carrow Road, after scoring 87 goals in 221 appearances for the Whites.

Meanwhile, Morison had enjoyed 15 and 20-goal campaigns as a Millwall player, and had also banked a nine-goal Premier League season as a Norwich player previously.

All the signs pointed towards being a good deal for both clubs, but Becchio's and Morison's careers at Norwich and Leeds would go down as nothing short of disastrous.

Two iconic EFL strikers, two largely forgettable transfers. Football League World looks back on the 2013 swap deal that fans of both clubs will want to forget.

Becchio endures nightmare spell at Carrow Road

Article image:Leeds United and Norwich City both lost out after 2013 Deadline Day deal: View

After finally realising his dream of becoming a Premier League player, Becchio was expected to bring his goalscoring record that he'd seen become a Leeds legend, to Norfolk.

With Grant Holt being Norwich's main source of goals and a key player in Chris Hughton's side, Becchio was limited to just eight Premier League appearances in the second half of the season, scoring zero goals.

But, Norwich supporters were prepared to be patient with the Argentine, as it can be difficult to make an instant impact for a new side with just one half of the season remaining, let alone after making the step-up to the top-flight.

However, the 2013/14 season would be a fairly disastrous one for both Norwich and Becchio. The Canaries were relegated from the Premier League, with the striker making just five appearances and, yet again, failing to find the net.

His goal drought meant the club believed it would be best to commission a loan move for the forward ahead of the 2014/15 season, with then Championship side Rotherham taking him on a temporary loan from September-January.

Becchio would make just five Championship appearances during his time with the Millers, scoring twice, and returned to Carrow Road at the turn of the year.

However, after making just one Norwich appearance in the second half of the 2014/15 season, Becchio would leave the club in the summer of 2015, joining Argentinian side Belgrano on a free transfer.

Morison doesn't fare much better at Elland Road

Article image:Leeds United and Norwich City both lost out after 2013 Deadline Day deal: View

With his transfer comrade failing to find the net in a single competitive appearance during his Norwich career, Morison could only make a better go of it in a Leeds shirt, couldn't he?

Well, yes, but not by much. In his first half-season with Leeds in 2012/13, Morison made 16 appearances and scored three times in all competitions, with the presence of Ross McCormack up-front proving a tough player to dislodge from the starting lineup.

The Whites would then take a similar approach to that of Norwich with Becchio, by sending him out on a season-long loan to Millwall for the duration of the 2013/14 season.

Lions supporters were granted the chance to see their former goalscoring hero don their colours once again, after scoring 41 goals in 95 appearances for the club between 2009-2011. And who knows, maybe it wouldn't be the last time either.

42 appearances and eight goals in all competitions for Millwall ensured that he'd be returning to Leeds as a player who'd evidenced his ability at Championship level, and was now expected to really kickstart his Whites career.

Unfortunately, that was a storyline that was crumpled up and thrown away, as what occurred was yet another frustrating season in West Yorkshire. Two goals in 26 appearances during the 2014/15 season was to be the nail in Morison's Leeds United coffin.

In the summer of 2015, The Den became Morison's home once again, but this time, it was for good. He would go on to make a further 199 appearances in a Lions shirt, scoring 44 times, before retiring as a Shrewsbury Town player in 2019.

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