KANSAS CITY, Mo. – With just three weeks left in Kei Kamara's loan to Norwich City, Sporting Kansas City are still waiting to hear whether the Premier League side wants to keep the forward in England or let him return to MLS.
“We're also inquiring as well, so we can do some planning,” manager and technical director Peter Vermes said after Monday's training session, Sporting's last before a road swing that takes them to New York on Wednesday (7:30 pm ET, watch LIVE online) and then on to a meeting with the LA Galaxy on Saturday. “We're looking into it, but I haven't heard anything yet.”
The Sierra Leone international's loan is set to expire on May 6, even before the end of the Premiership season, but Norwich have an option to make the deal permanent.
“We've already negotiated everything,” Vermes said. “Other than Kei saying he doesn't want to do it, it would pretty much go through.”
READ: Arsenal's Wenger says "it's fantastic" what Kamara is achieving
Should the Canaries want to keep him, it's unlikely that Kamara would decline. He has been a popular addition to the club, with one goal in eight appearances since his arrival.
One possible reason for Norwich's silence on the matter, Vermes said, is that they still aren't safe from relegation out of England's top flight. The Canaries currently have 35 points, good for 14th place in the table and four points clear of the danger zone, with five matches still to play.
“They're not really sure where they sit right now and where they're going to go,” Vermes said. “If they would be a little more secure in their position in the league, I think it would be easier for them to make a deal one way or the other. Right now, I think that's why we're not hearing anything. That's my opinion. It may not be fact.”
Kamara, who trained over the winter break with Premier League side Stoke City before the loan to Norwich, is in the last year of his contract with Sporting. He was the club's leading scorer in each of their past three seasons, finishing 2012 with career highs of 11 goals and eight assists.
Steve Brisendine covers Sporting Kansas City for MLSsoccer.com.
