Norwich City will not pursue a transfer for West Ham United midfielder Andy Irving, despite initial reports linking the Scot with a move to Carrow Road from London Stadium.

That is according to the Pink’Un, who have also transmitted comments from Canaries head coach Philippe Clement on his transfer strategy between now and the closure of business on Monday, February 2nd, at 7 p.m.

It has been an extremely frustrating and unexpected first 26 games of the season for the East Anglian side, which moved to appoint the former AS Monaco, Club Brugge, and Glasgow Rangers boss in mid-November following the disastrously short-lived reign of his predecessor and Norwich-born manager, Liam Manning.

Clement has overseen a relative upsurge in recent weeks, with Norwich beginning to show some form at Carrow Road, where they had failed to win in all competitions during Manning’s tenure, and they are now one point adrift of Championship safety heading into this weekend’s trip to Wrexham.

However, it remains to be seen whether City can hold their nearest rivals, Portsmouth, at bay, with John Mousinho’s team having two games in hand.

As a result, there has been a lot of talk about transfers at Carrow Road, both incoming and outgoing, with the club desperately needing reinforcements in a few departments to avoid relegation to League One for the first time in 16 years.

During Clement’s first transfer window in command of the club, the only addition to his roster has been left-winger Ali Ahmed, who signed a three-and-a-half-year contract after joining from Major League Soccer team Vancouver Whitecaps.

Of course, there has been much speculation that City’s prized asset, Josh Sargent, will go, with Clement dropping a bombshell last weekend when he said that the USMNT striker would be unavailable against Walsall due to interest from Toronto FC.

In the interim, Irving has become one of a few players connected with a move to the Championship team, while his present side is also in relegation danger, lying seven points below safety in the Premier League.

However, such ties have subsequently been severed, forcing Norwich to shift its focus to new creative targets.

Links between Norwich City and West Ham United midfielder Andy Irving have been refuted.

Irving has had a mixed season at the London Stadium, having joined from SK Austria Klagenfurt in the summer of 2023 for a reported £500,000 under David Moyes.

After spending the entire following season on loan with the Austrian club, the former Hearts midfielder made his Hammers debut in October 2024, a 3-0 defeat to Chelsea under Julen Lopetegui.

Despite being the subject of an intriguing transfer agreement, Irving has only made 18 competitive appearances for the Irons under three different head coaches. Nuno Espírito Santo is currently at the helm, but the club is already facing criticism for failing to address its dire situation.

The 25-year-old, who has one Scotland cap, was heavily linked with a move away to newly promoted Wrexham in the summer, but a reported £3.5 million deal fell through late in the window, while their interest in Irving was said to have been renewed in the run-up to the current window.

It was reported earlier this week that Norwich were one of several clubs interested in signing the Edinburgh native after he was named an unused substitute in the Hammers’ FA Cup victory over Queens Park Rangers on Sunday.

However, a deal between the two parties appears to be dead in the water due to competing interests, forcing Clement to divert his attention elsewhere.

Philippe Clement reveals Norwich City’s transfer plans after Andy Irving blow.

Although it’s unknown if Irving’s move would have been on a loan or permanent basis, it’s apparent that City’s manager prefers the latter when it comes to signing new players.”I’m not a fan of multiple loans in the club because it means restarting the story every six months or a year,” Clement explained.We don’t currently have a squad like that. Of course, I prefer permanent, as do everyone else, as well as the club and the owners, because you are not working for someone else. If you properly develop a player, his value rises, and you may profit from that increase.”

As a result, it is evident that Clement is aiming to sign players who can grow with the club in the long run, which may explain why ties to Perth Glory’s Tom Lawrence were ruled out, despite the 32-year-old previously working under the Belgian at Rangers.