Marcus Edwards could feature for Norwich by end of March

When Marcus Edwards went out on loan to Norwich City in the Championship, the assumed wisdom was that he’d be a regular contributor for the Canaries and we’d finally be able to see what “Mini Messi” could do with some regular football.

Well, it hasn’t quite worked out that way. Norwich manager Daniel Farke had some harsh (but probably fair) words for young Mr. Edwards, basically saying that his attitude stunk and that he’d be on the fringes at Norwich until he turned that around.

We got an update on Edwards today from Farke, courtesy of the Norwich Evening News, which states that Edwards is starting to reform his attitude, is doing good things in training, and that he could start featuring for the Canaries as soon as the end of March.

“Our squad is not too big and at the moment without [German defensive midfielder] Tom Trbyull we have 21 outfield players available. So he is an option.

“In general, he has improved a lot, in terms of his attitude, but he can still grow up a bit more and also we have to work on strengthening his body to help his endurance and power.

“The last two weeks he was able to do proper training with us. He is not far away, not an option for this next game [today vs. Nottingham Forest], because it is a bit too early and he has to improve a bit in some topics.

“At the latest, after the next international break but he might be involved before then.”

The more I’m learning about Edwards, the more I’m starting to think that he’s the kind of young player that just needs the right situation and the occasional swift kick up the backside to keep him in line. We’ve been hearing rumors that he’s prodigiously talented, but has some issues with his attitude, and this loan would seem to confirm that.

No doubt Mauricio Pochettino had a nice long talk with Farke ahead of this loan about Edwards, and this might be exactly what he needs to start fulfilling his promise as a professional footballer. Farke certainly seemed to start his relationship with Edwards under no illusions about what kind of a player he is.

We’re abashed Marcus Edwards fans at Cartilage Free Captain (except for Skipjack), and we’d like nothing better than to see him come good, especially if he does so as a member of Tottenham Hotspur. But first he needs to establish himself as a Championship footballer, and he’s got a good opportunity to do so at Norwich.