"Norwich City players rarely ever do" - Carrow Road "magician" Borja Sainz singled out | OneFootball

Borja Sainz has taken the Championship by storm this season, and is by far Norwich's best player at present, according to FLW's Canaries fan pundit.

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more...

Norwich City have not had the start to the season that they would have hoped for.

The Canaries are undergoing somewhat of a rebuild of identity at the moment, and as a result, their performances on the pitch have been rather average.

Ahead of this season, 35-year-old Johannes Hoff Thorup took charge as manager and immediately suffered a number of blows as some key individuals departed the club.

Norwich are currently 13th in the table as Thorup looks to become accustomed to life in England and the Championship.

From their opening 16 league games, they have picked up just four wins, while drawing seven and losing five.

It is a record that they will be desperate to improve if they have any hopes of finishing near the play-offs.

Thorup deserves some time to implement his tactics and build an identity at the club, but currently things are not going his way on the pitch, as his side have failed to win their last seven league games.

That said, there is one Norwich player in particular that is seemingly carrying the team on his shoulders this season, with his immense performances and relentless goal contributions.

Norwich City fan singles out the Canaries' current best player

Despite the poor results as of late, there is one thing that the Norwich faithful can be excited about. FLW's Norwich City fan pundit, Zeke Downes, was asked who is their current best player and how he'd sum him up in just word, and the answer was probably a no-brainer.

He said: "I would say our best player right now would be Borja Sainz. A good word to describe him would probably be magician, because a lot of what he does, I've seen Norwich players rarely ever do.

"It seems like every shot that he has is always going to go in, no matter if it's a shot close to the goal, or if it's a long-range shot. He just seems to know where the goal is.

"You sort of expect that it is going to stop, but then it keeps happening, and all the goals that he has scored from outside of the box are very good goals.

"It's not even like he is having a lot of shots from outside of the box either. You don't really see him shoot and miss, which is why he has massively over-performed his XG. He's a special player."

Borja Sainz's 2024/25 campaign so far

Last season, Sainz worked his way into the starting 11 for Norwich and managed to score six goals in 25 league starts, but this season he has taken it to a whole new level.

It is still only November, and Sainz has already broken his 'goals in one season' record, having netted 11 already in the league, along with an extra goal in the EFL Cup against Stevenage.

The Spaniard has gone from a regular starter to being the first name on the team sheet without doubt, as his performances on the left wing for Norwich have been sublime this season.

Arguably, his highlight of the season so far came back in September as the Canaries travelled to Derby County. It was a close encounter between the two sides, but Sainz' hat trick single-handedly earned Norwich all three points on the day, as they won 3-2 away from home.

The tricky winger is a lethal dribbler of the ball with an incredible long-shot ability, and is terrifying when cutting onto his right foot from the left wing. He has all the qualities of a top-class winger, and it seems only a matter of time until he earns a big move away, so Norwich must enjoy it while it lasts.

As expected, the list of potential suitors is already taking shape ahead of the January transfer window, with Turkish giants, Galatasaray reportedly being among the interested clubs. The club signed former Norwich star man, Gabriel Sara, in the summer, so a move for Sainz would make a lot of sense.

Elsewhere, clubs from his home nation are also keen, with Atlético Madrid, Athletic Club, and Villareal all reportedly keeping tabs on the Spanish winger.