There’s plenty of ‘what if’ stories with recent players who never quite reached their potential, or saw their stint at St James’ Park marred by injury after injury.
Jamal Lewis was unfortunately one of those players: once touted as a rising star for Norwich, which included being named in the EFL Team of the Season back in 2018/19, his £15m move to the North East the following season should have seen him cement himself as one of best full backs in the division.
Unfortunately, he would go on to make just 35 appearances for us across the next five years, and was loaned out to both Watford and São Paulo before his release over the summer.
However, still only 27-years-old, there’s plenty of time for Lewis to enjoy the career resurgence he deserves, and a fresh stint in the Championship could do the trick for him…
Preston North End have completed the signing of Jamal Lewis on a short team deal until the 30th of December.
The Northern Irishman has been without a club since his release, and could even make his debut as soon as this weekend’s game against a struggling Southampton side.
On his move to Preston, Lewis commented: “I’m really excited. I’m really grateful for the opportunity and just ready and raring to go, to be honest.”
“I spoke to the manager. Obviously he knows of me and my running power, what I can give to any team that I play for. I think how the team plays should suit me and I should be able to gel with the team quite well.
“I just want to be able to get as much knowledge and information and get everything moving as quickly as possible so I can just help as much as I can.”
Right now, we’re relatively thin in terms of fullback options, with Eddie Howe relying on Dan Burn and Kieran Trippier until the pairing of Lewis Hall and Tino Livramento both return from injury.
But could there have been a case for Lewis to start at least our cup games and appear as a bench player if he was still at the club? After Burn, our next best option at left back is Alex Murphy, who hasn’t played for the senior side since pre-season.
And in the case of players like Lewis Miley and Emil Krafth, even just sporadic appearances and a short run of games are enough for them to quickly build up momentum and stake their claim for more starting opportunities moving forward.
But in the case of Lewis, it was remaining fit enough for those rare run of games that was the issue. Even at São Paulo his loan deal was cut short because of his injury woes.
But with a fresh opportunity ahead of him in a league that he’s played exceptionally in before, here’s hoping that Lewis can finally end a nightmare few seasons and flourish once again.
Add Comment