After stealing Liam Manning from Bristol City, Norwich City are looking to assemble a squad this summer that can challenge for promotion to the Premier League.
Norwich have already confirmed the signing of Jacob Wright from Manchester City after his successful loan spell, and the Canaries have also captured Daniel Grimshaw.
But the fast start to their summer business isn’t going to stop there, though, as EFL Analysis have revealed that Norwich have entered the race for Harry Darling, with his Swansea City contract set to expire.
Liam Manning worked with Darling during his time managing MK Dons, and the former Bristol City boss is keen to bring the 25-year-old to Carrow Road this summer.
Darling is one of many centre-backs currently starring in the Championship, with Manning surely looking to prise a star from Sheffield Wednesday in the future.
Photo by Jess Hornby/Getty Images
Photo by Jess Hornby/Getty Images
Liam Manning should try to sign Sheffield Wednesday’s Di’Shon Bernard
There are no guarantees that Norwich will wrap up a transfer for Darling, as multiple other second-tier sides will be offering him a contract.
So, with a chance of missing out on the Englishman, perhaps Manning should place other names on his shortlist, including Sheffield Wednesday’s Di’Shon Bernard.
With the EFL placing a transfer embargo on Wednesday after Dejphon Chansiri failed to pay his players, Bernard is surely one player pushing for an exit.
The Jamaican powerhouse was outstanding in the Championship last term, making 27 appearances before being sidelined with a long-term knee injury in February.
Unfortunately, the 24-year-old required surgery and missed the rest of the season as a result and could now miss the start of the 2025/26 campaign.
That could rule out a move for Bernard early in the window, but as the deadline approaches, he is certainly someone who would improve the Norwich defence with his pace, strength, aerial prowess and ball-playing abilities, something Manning is well aware of.
Manning was once blown away by Bernard
Standing at 6ft2 inches, Bernard is a hulking presence in defence and is capable of outmuscling the division’s strongest attackers.
Manning discovered this during Bristol City’s draw against Sheffield Wednesday in October 2024, as Bernard pocketed Sinclair Armstrong and forced the manager to make a change, bringing on Nakhi Wells.
Speaking after the game, Manning showered the Jamaican’s defensive performance with praise, labelling him ‘terrific’.
“I think he was terrific physically, Bernard,” he said via The Star. “It’s the best physical match-up I’ve seen against Sincs and it doesn’t happen too often. So we changed tactic and brought Nakhi in, he’s really bright with his movement and he got into some half-decent areas, it nearly came off.
“If you look at pace and power, although it pinned them back, it wasn’t working at the start of the second half. For me, rather than match-up with pace and power – that was their game – we went with a little intelligence with Nakhi in terms of his movement.”
Manning was clearly a big fan of Bernard, and if the opportunity ever arose to sign him for Norwich amid Wednesday’s financial turmoil, surely he’d take it.