Liam Manning has spoken to Championship ace since taking over at Norwich City, he ‘would like’ to sign him

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It’s been a busy summer for Norwich City already and new manager Liam Manning is wasting no time in trying to sign another top Championship star.

Since being appointed as the new Norwich City manager, Liam Manning has already snapped up Harry Darling on a free transfer from Swansea City.

Darling is joined by fellow new signings at Norwich, Daniel Grimshaw and Louie Moulden, while defender Jakov Medic could be set to follow soon.

However, EFL Analysis can now exclusively reveal that the Canaries are taking steps to sign a more attacking player, with a potential Borja Sainz replacement in the offing.

• READ MORE: Norwich City’s most expensive sales of all time with Borja Sainz and Josh Sargent poised to break the list

Norwich City are talking to Tyrhys Dolan

We spoke to our Chief Football Correspondent Graeme Bailey about the situation at Norwich, as the Canaries brace themselves for the exit of Borja Sainz this summer.

Bailey said: “I think Norwich have got big plans in the transfer market when it comes to replacing Sainz. There are a lot of options out there for Norwich, and I think they’ll be doing their due diligence while Manning gets his feet under the table.

“We know Norwich like the foreign market. We’ve seen that, and I think they’ll probably dip into that market again.”

However, there is an option closer to home that may well be heading to Carrow Road. Norwich have been linked with Blackburn Rovers star Tyrhys Dolan already, with the player set to become a free agent at the end of this month.

We understand Dolan is still “exploring his options” with plenty of interest already from Championship clubs and clubs across Europe. But, crucially, we are told Norwich have spoken to Dolan since Manning took over, and it is clear the Norwich boss “would like” to bring the winger in.

• READ MORE: Daniel Farke already explained why he wants to sign Josh Sargent again, Norwich City will lose a ‘fantastic’ player

Tyrhys Dolan would be the perfect Borja Sainz replacement

Dolan has been offered a new contract at Blackburn, but it is becoming increasingly likely that he will move on now.

And, while Blackburn may have finished above Norwich last season, the project being put together by Manning at Carrow Road is an attractive one.

For Norwich, there’s every reason to believe that Dolan would be the ideal replacement for the outgoing Borja Sainz, too.

Sainz bagged 19 goals and four assists last season, while Dolan managed seven goals and six assists. But, Sainz did play 438 minutes more than the Blackburn ace.

It’s clear Sainz is more of a direct goal threat, and while the Spaniard had the far higher xG last season (and outperformed it, too), there’s an interesting advantage for Dolan when you look closer at the statistics.

The Blackburn star actually produced more goal-creating actions per 90 (0.48) compared to Sainz (0.32). Let’s assume the best-case scenario for Norwich — that they keep Josh Sargent — and it’s easy to see how Dolan could be lethal out on the left if he’s given the chance to feed the US striker for Norwich next season.