Norwich City secured an 88-goal striker for £0 – Is this the Canaries’ best ever signing? | OneFootball

Norwich’s capture of Teemu Pukki from Brondby was a sensational piece of business on a free transfer.

Over the last two decades, Norwich City have either been fighting towards the top end of the Championship or competing with heavyweights in the Premier League.

The Canaries have secured four promotions back to the top-flight in that time, with many players making a name for themselves and turning into heroes in East Anglia.

One of them was Finnish striker Teemu Pukki, who cemented his status as a modern-day legend with the Canaries.

Then Norwich boss Daniel Farke decided to take the plunge and recruit the forward on a free transfer in 2018 despite the frontman having a dismal spell in Scotland with Celtic, leaving people questioning whether he was good enough to step up and make a mark in England.

However, the German coach had seen something in Pukki, and for good reason, with few expecting how effective he would turn out to be in a Norwich shirt for such a small sum of money.

Pukki would go on to spend a memorable five seasons at Carrow Road, turning into a fan favourite and always being remembered by the Norwich faithful fondly for his time in Norfolk.

Teemu Pukki’s impact at Norwich City

After suffering relegation back down to the second tier in 2016, Norwich secured eighth and 14th-placed finishes in the Championship, with expectations low about Pukki's move.

The signing didn’t seem exciting business given Pukki’s previous struggles in Scotland and his free agent tag, but he would go on to wow the crowd in yellow and green, turning into their most dependable asset.

In the 2018/19 term, Norwich would take the Championship by storm and finish as champions, with Pukki offering a big helping hand with a whopping 29 league goals, earning him accolades such as the Championship Golden Boot, Championship Player of the Season, PFA Fans' Player of the Year and being named in both the EFL and PFA Team of the Year.

Pukki would go on to transition his goalscoring exploits into the Premier League, scoring six goals in his first five games and winning the Player of the Month award for August 2019.

The now 34-year-old couldn’t go on and regularly score at such a consistent rate, but he did net 11 times as the Canaries made an instant return to the Championship.

Back in the second tier, Pukki would continue such an explosive run in front of goal, this time registering 26 strikes as Norwich were crowned second tier champions once again and being named in both the EFL and PFA Team of the Season.

It was a carbon copy season back in the top-flight, with Pukki once again scoring 11 times for the club, who failed to retain their Premier League status, this time under Dean Smith.

In his third Championship campaign, the Kotka-born forward would see his goalscoring rate undergo a significant drop-off, with just 10 goals, and he would depart the club at the end of that season.

During his time in East Anglia, Pukki recorded 88 goals from 210 appearances, ranking as the fourth-highest scorer in the club’s history, which is a sensational achievement after securing his services on a free transfer.

Teemu Pukki transfer will go down in Norwich City folklore

To score so regularly in the top two divisions of English football, Teemu Pukki certainly has to go down as the best bargain buy in Norwich’s history, and potentially one of the best in world football.

A joy to watch when leading the line, Pukki was a constant headache for both Championship and Premier League defenders, twisting them inside and outside with his clever movement and having the ability to stick the ball in the back of the net most times when presented with an opportunity.

Such a reliable figure at the top end of the pitch, he was a colossal reason for Norwich spending so much time in the Premier League and reaping the financial rewards of being among England’s elite over the last few years.

The recruitment team at Norwich couldn’t have done a better job by bringing Pukki to the club, who went beyond the wildest of expectations and transformed himself into a Canaries icon, without costing the club a penny.