Joshua King

[Look4Me]

According to Norwegian TV2, Henning's old employer, Rovers are close to signing Norwegian international Joshua King on loan from Manchester United.

http://www.tv2.no/sport/fotball/england/championship/joshua-king-paa-vei-til-blackburn-3930001.html

[G Somerset Rover]

Hmmmm looks like this may happen.

1 goal in 18 appearances for Hull last season but on the flip side Henning must know a fair bit about him. Surely spells the end of CKR's loan if he does come as they sound very similar players.

[Swanson]

This could be a very good signing.

[Hughesy]

This could be a very good signing.

Based on what?

[Torgeir]

Based on what?

Showed some promise for the full Norwegian international team. Got pace, which we have lacked. Still a bit raw, but could be an impact player off the bench or a useful starter. Hope he's overcome his injury problems...

[Hughesy]

Apparently its a done deal.... loan till Jan when it will become permanent move

[Granateple]

He used to score regularly for the reserves a couple of years back, then went out on loan and was used as a winger. Only scored once for Hull and didn't play much for Gladbach. This season he's got 8 or 9 assists + a couple of goals in about 10 reserve games (mostly played as a winger), and has been very impressive both for the senior national team and the under-21s.

He said earlier this year that he has turned down almost every team in the Championship because he wants a move to a Premier League team if he doesn't get the chance at United, so I'm fairly sure Berg is planning on using him as a starter.

[LeChuck]

Apparently its a done deal.... loan till Jan when it will become permanent move

Wow really, where's that from Hughesy?

Getting him on a permanent deal would be a bit of a coup.

I'm fairly sure Berg is planning on using him as a starter.

After reading a bit about him, I'm fairly convinced he'll take Marcus' role on the left wing.

[den]

Getting him on a permanent deal would be a bit of a coup.

2 senior goals in his entire career? TBH, I know nothing whatsoever about him, but if this is a coup, wouldn't every signing be a coup LeC?

[T.J.Newton]

2 senior goals in his entire career? TBH, I know nothing whatsoever about him, but if this is a coup, wouldn't every signing be a coup LeC?

about the same as Hoilet had scored at that age(just for a little perspective).

[den]

about the same as Hoilet had scored at that age(just for a little perspective).

Well this is looking better all the time. First Thierry Henry and now Junior Hoilett.

Let's see eh?

[T.J.Newton]

about the same as Hoilet had scored at that age(just for a little perspective).

Actually i apologise that's not true, just remembered i think he scored a bag load in Germany before he was even 18ish, but still!(lets not judge too soon).

p.s. off topic but i see Blackmans looking the business at shef united, never understood why he was so disliked, he was just a kid playing under a useless manager(not that he even got much game time).

[Salgado Is A Hero]

He was disliked as a player because he didn't perform to the required standard....and didn't look like he would for us under any manager.

Can't remember one comment mentioning disliking him on a personal level.

My brother who went to uni in Preston and saw King play said he is awful at finishing but fast and quite good at dribbling.

[LeChuck]

2 senior goals in his entire career? TBH, I know nothing whatsoever about him, but if this is a coup, wouldn't every signing be a coup LeC?

He's not an out-and-out striker so his goal record isn't really enough to judge him on. He's a highly rated young player from Man Utd, and already a full international for Norway. Frazier Campbell went on loan to Hull under a similar situation and was great.

There's plenty out there about him if you Google. The following is a Man Utd fan in a topic comparing him to Tom Ince last month, following the transfer speculation that he might be heading to OT in January:

"I would rather we keep King instead of buying Ince.

King has never played a full game for the first team and he is certainly alot better than Macheda(who has played a few games for us in both PL and CL) King is starting to break through now(atleast Internationally) He`s only 20 years old and he is fast,strong and can take on players and he works very hard.King has alot of interest around him now and his agent said many clubs are interested,PL clubs included.I would hate to see him leave for another PL club and become a very good striker."

A few other people say he's better than Macheda on there. I think he'd be a big improvement on Marcus Olsson on the left wing, which seems to be considered his best position amonst Man Utd fans.

[Granateple]

2 senior goals in his entire career? TBH, I know nothing whatsoever about him, but if this is a coup, wouldn't every signing be a coup LeC?

His "entire career" is only about 30 games, and almost everyone of them has been as a winger. He used to score regularly when he was played as a striker for the United reserves, but as said the last couple of seasons he's been used as a winger.

Not saying his finishing is his biggest strength or anything, but I think his goal tally has a lot to do with how he has been played. Also I see him as sort of a confidence player that will score a fair amount of goals if played as a striker. His pace is probably his biggest strength, but he is also very strong and has a lot of attributes that can make him a very good player.

[tugay5]

Isn't the loan market closing tonight? Does that mean this deal won't happen? Seems to have gone quiet

[Boltinho]

Isn't the loan market closing tonight? Does that mean this deal won't happen? Seems to have gone quiet

Tomorrow i guess....

[T.J.Newton]

He was disliked as a player because he didn't perform to the required standard....and didn't look like he would for us under any manager.

Can't remember one comment mentioning disliking him on a personal level.

neither did any other player under kean(hence relegation), he was just a kid who was thrown in at the deep end a few times some fans are just miserable and aren't happy unless they have somebody to criticise(justified or not), anyway I'm happy he's doing well elsewhere(hope we have a good future sell on clause).

[patrickvalery]

If nothing else it will be great to see some extra pace in the side. Speed causes every side in the world problems and even if his final ball or finish isn't top notch (which it won't be or he'd be a Utd first team player) it will still put the opposition on the back foot. Good move on the surface of it.

[neophox]

Its a loan so no harm at all... Henning Berg knows the player, young and from United.

[bluebruce]

My brother who went to uni in Preston and saw King play said he is awful at finishing but fast and quite good at dribbling.

So, we're getting Mame Biram Diouf again? :-P

Absolutely willing to judge the lad when I see him, but I do have a few concerns. One being that if he thinks his level is the Premiership after not setting the world alight in his Championship loan, you might have to question if he's a bit arrogant. Not always a bad thing though in football. The other thing is, I really don't see that we need more strikers, especially a youthful gamble. I'd rather work on developing Rhodes and Rochina. If he's going to be played on the wing, fair enough, but with Nunes, two Olssons and Pedersen who can play there, is it necessary and will it stagnate the development of others? Another way of looking at that is that some don't rate any of those guys on the left wing! Though from what I've seen personally (only caught a few games and all the highlights), Nunes looks to have potential, I rate Martin Olsson there, and feel his brother could become a similar player with game time. Pedersen is done for. Surely if we get this lad, he really will be on his way out. Which is fine by me.

Course, maybe this lad is a genuinely hot prospect, in which case it could be worth the added competition if we can sign him permanently. Bit of a waste of time IMO if there's no view to purchase though, as it's hard to see a young, inexperienced lad setting the league alight in just two months.

[Granateple]

Diouf is scoring for fun at Hannover now, and if he had been used in his main position as a striker, and not as a winger his stay at Blackburn might have been a bit different

King is different from Diouf in the way that he's actually pretty good as a winger, and I think that is where Berg is going to want to play him. As some have said earlier he prefers pacy wingers, so I don't think Pedersen will play very much.

[bluebruce]

We couldn't afford to keep playing him up front (And he did get some time there), as his finishing was very poor. I always said that if he learned to finish he could be quality.

So, what makes King a good winger? Is he a good (consistent) crosser of the ball?

[Granateple]

He's a decent crosser, but his main strength is his pace. One of the fastest players I've seen, and his strength and work rate is also very good for a 20 year old. I think he can come across as a bit arrogant at times, but not really in a bad way, and is not a very selfish player. He's got almost as many assists as played games for the reserves this season.

The norwegian national coach ( who by the way is not really famous for giving unproved youngsters the chance ) has also been speaking very highly of him and has compared him to a young John Carew (the Carew before he got old and lazy and actually was a very good footballer) in terms of pace and strength.

He is a bit raw, but I genuinely think he will be a top player. In a good Championship team like Blackburn with a manager that knows him I believe he can do very well.

[Kelbo]

Yes, we should see what the lad has to offer, however, one contact of mine says he is not the best reader of the game!