Long-serving midfielders Alex Tettey and Mario Vrančić to leave Norwich City this summer
Norwich City have announced that long-serving midfielders Alex Tettey and Mario Vrančić will both leave the club this summer.
Norwegian Tettey, 35, joined from French club Rennes in 2012 and has gone on to make 262 appearances for the Canaries in the nine years since.
During that time, he's experienced plenty of ups and downs - including three promotions and three relegations.
Despite managers coming and going, he's remained a constant presence in the centre of Norwich's midfield but has struggled for game time more this season, largely due to the consistency of Tottenham loanee Oliver Skipp.
Meanwhile, Vrančić, 31, has made 133 appearances for the club since making the move from German club SV Darmstadt in 2017.
The Bosnian playmaker has scored 17 goals for the club during that time, including memorable strikes against Sheffield Wednesday, Leeds United and Aston Villa during the Canaries' 2018/19 promotion season.
Both players were out of contract this summer, but sporting director Stuart Webber has confirmed they won't be offered new deals as Norwich step up their preparations for their return to the Premier League.
“Both Alex and Mario have made significant contributions to the football club and this is a sad day for all connected with Norwich City," said Webber.
“For Alex to have achieved what he has over his nine-year spell at the club is phenomenal. He will of course be rightly remembered as a Norwich City legend. We will always have a role for Alex at this football club and, should he wish, we will help and support him with the next stage of his career when he feels the time is right.
"Mario will rightly be remembered for his many moments of magic. He’s a top professional and I don’t think anyone will forget his goals against Sheffield Wednesday, Blackburn and the title-clincher at Aston Villa. We knew we were signing a top professional four years ago and he has certainly surpassed what we all expected of him.”
Webber also revealed that loanees Xavi Quintilla and Oliver Skipp will both return to parent clubs Villarreal and Tottenham respectively, although he did also admit that the Canaries would love to re-sign Skipp if the opportunity arises in the summer.
“From day one, Xavi has always been here with a smile on his face and has delivered when called upon. He leaves us as a champion and he will no doubt go on to have a great career in the game," Webber said.
"Oliver has been tremendous for us this season and words can’t explain how grateful we all are for his contribution. It goes without saying, we’d of course love to work with Oliver again in the future, but either way he will be remembered at this club for a long time.”