On the face of it, adding a fifth right wing-back to a squad that has gaping holes elsewhere may seem a waste of limited resources, however, the signing of Brooke Norton-Cuffy could well add valuable qualities to Coventry City that may ease the burden on other players. First and foremost, the reason that Norton-Cuffy has been signed is that, while a lot of different players have played in his position this season, none of them have been able to take charge of the role as first-choice. Norton-Cuffy has already shown this season that he can positively impact games at Championship level, leaving a high degree of confidence that he will improve this Coventry City side.
Brooke Norton-Cuffy is a skilful, attack-minded right wing-back who excels at dribbling and will stretch opponents more consistently from wing-back than the team’s other options. After impressing over the back end of last season in League One at Lincoln City, he made the step up to the Championship to join Rotherham United on loan over the first half of this season. Norton-Cuffy’s time at Rotherham started off brightly, with his forays down the right wing a key feature of their excellent start to the campaign. However, the departure of Paul Warne as Millers manager and subsequent tumble down the table saw Norton-Cuffy’s playing time decrease, which is why Arsenal recalled him to send out to another club.
The main concern with the signing of Brooke Norton-Cuffy is that he makes what is already a young and inexperienced back-line more so. The key to Norton-Cuffy being a success over the remainder of the season for Coventry City is likely to rely upon what else Mark Robins can do in the transfer market to address the defensive issues this team has. Nonetheless, Norton-Cuffy should pass the immediate test of being better in his position than what is currently available to the manager, representing a positive start to the January transfer window.
Sideways Sammy 