Exclusive: Norwich City star tipped to seal Premier League transfer this summer | OneFootball

Lee Hendrie spoke exclusively to Football League World about Norwich City marksman Josh Sargent

Sky Sports pundit and former Aston Villa defender Lee Hendrie has tipped Josh Sargent to potentially earn a big-money move to the Premier League this summer after scoring prolifically over the last three Championship campaigns with Norwich City.

Sargent first moved to Carrow Road from German outfit Werder Bremen back in the summer of 2021 in a reported £8 million deal, with Norwich competing in the Premier League at the time.

However, Sargent has reserved his finest goalscoring form for the Championship, emerging among the division's finest marksmen in recent times.

The 27-cap USA international has scored 27 goals and counting from just 49 league appearances since the start of the 2023/24 campaign. Sargent has suffered injury problems this term, but has been in electric form when fit with 11 goals and five assists in 21 Championship matches.

Sargent, who has scored seven times in his last seven outings, will have a leading role to play if Norwich elevate from 11th and into the Championship play-offs come May. However, the 25-year-old is only going from strength-to-strength and Johannes Hoff Thorup will surely be fearful of losing his services this summer if Norwich fall short in their bid to return to the Premier League.

Lee Hendrie tips Josh Sargent for potential Norwich City, Premier League summer transfer exit

Sargent has established himself as one of the Championship's best attackers over the last two years for a side who, during that time, have seldom been in strong promotion contention. It's little wonder, then, that Sargent has been tipped to leave the club as he enters the prime age of his career.

Speaking exclusively to Football League World about the Canaries talisman, Hendrie explained: "They're sitting 11th in the table at the moment and there is a possibility they might get into the play-offs.

"The thing is with him, he's 25 years of age and has established he can be a consistent performer in the Championship on the goal front.

"I know he's had his injuries but he has to be looking at that age and you have to think if Norwich don't go and invest and push next season, does he look at something else?

"All top players want to go and achieve their ultimate goals and play at the highest level possible. We've seen Norwich coming in and out of the Premier League, [most recently] you're looking back at the 2021/22 season when he played in the Premier League.

"He didn't play as many games and didn't score as many goals. The problem is finding a right fit for Sargent to go and make that achievement worthwhile, because Norwich is a fantastic club.

"I think his goal record will start to attract and make other people be aware that he can go and make a step-up to one of the top clubs in the Championship or lower end of the Premier League."

Norwich City's Josh Sargent is too good for the Championship

Sargent may not have been quite cut out for the rigors of Premier League football when he arrived in Norfolk at the age of 21 nearly four years ago now, but that has since changed considerably.

On most occasions, the striker looks classes above the Championship and every bit capable of playing top-flight football. A high-volume shooter, Sargent's goals to minutes ratio over the last eighteen months is remarkable and he has a natural ability to routinely find the right positions in and around the 18-yard box.

Most encouragingly, though, Sargent is an all-rounder who has a variety of goals in his locker, can run the channels and get in behind and is also intelligent and selfless enough to link play and carve out chances for others, as evidenced by his tally of five assists for the season.

Those attributes would make him an extremely shrewd pick for a number of clubs in the bottom-half of the Premier League, and Norwich