Former Norwich City forward Iwan Roberts believes Borja Sainz has started to show the quality required to step up in Jonathan Rowe’s absence.
Rowe was substituted in the second half during Norwich’s 2-2 draw against QPR on Saturday, and David Wagner has since confirmed that the forward suffered a hamstring injury. As a result, the 20-year-old is expected to be out until April in a major blow to Norwich’s push for the Championship play-offs.
In 25 league appearances this season, Rowe has scored 12 goals. He was in strong form before sustaining his injury, striking in important victories over promotion-chasing Hull and West Brom.
Although the injury will be a setback for the Canaries, Wagner has several players available to replace Rowe, including Onel Hernandez and Christian Fassnacht. In addition, Norwich showed their capabilities of coping without their talented youngster after notching a 4-2 home win over Watford on Tuesday.
One player who has caught the eye of former Canary Roberts though is Borja Sainz. The former Norwich striker, when writing his regular column for the Pink Un, said the Spanish forward has shown glimpses of quality that could land him a regular starting spot in Rowe’s absence.
“City do have a good back up though with Borja Sainz, someone I really like. I don’t want to go over the top but he really is looking the part.”
Initially, Sainz struggled to make an instant impact after moving to Carrow Road from Turkish side Giresunspor in the 2023 summer window. The 22-year-old had to wait until mid-December to make his first Norwich start, but seized the opportunity with a goal and assist during a 3-1 win against Sheffield Wednesday.
Wagner then selected Sainz in his starting XI for the next three matches, in which he scored another goal against Huddersfield. But the 22-year-old was sent off after 33 minutes in the 1-0 loss to West Brom on Boxing Day.
Despite the ill-discipline, Sainz has started eight of the last 10 matches where he’s been available. The former Spain under-19 player also showed his goalscoring capabilities recently, with two goals in his last four appearances.
Writer’s View
Roberts is right in that Sainz has clear potential to perform at this level and has started to show his quality after a stuttering start in Norfolk. But consistency is the Spaniard’s main issue currently and he is not completely favoured by Wagner, as the German coach has only started Sainz in 11 league matches this season.
Ultimately, the 22-year-old is still bedding into the Championship football, and late-season form could be key for Norwich’s play-off challenge. But he still has a lot of development to do to reach the highest standards in the division.