Norwich City have confirmed that striker, Teemu Pukki will leave the club at end of 2022-23 season.
Pukki first joined Norwich from Brøndby on a free transfer in June 2018 and has since gone on to score 88 goals in 204 appearances at time of announcing his departure, during which he helped the club to Championship titles and promotion in 2018-19 and 2020-21 seasons.
The 33 year-old though scored 11 goals in each of the 2019-20 and 21-22 seasons as Norwich suffered immediate relegation from the Premier League, in which they finished in last position in both campaigns.
This season has seen Pukki net 10 goals in 37 appearances but he feels that now is the right time to leave Carrow Road for a fresh start.
Addressing his decision to leave Norwich, Pukki issued the following public statement via canaries.co.uk: “This has not been an easy decision because of what Norwich City means and has done for me.
“I’ve loved my time with this great club, but considering the stage of my career, and I know I have a few more years in me, I’m keen for another new experience.
“I have some amazing memories from my time here, with so many ups and downs. The two promotions were amazing.
“These five years have probably been the best of my career, both from a professional and personal perspective. I don’t think anyone believed it would go as well as it has. This club and city will always have a special place in my heart.
“This club means so much to me. I think back to when I signed here, it was such an easy club to settle in at. I’ve really enjoyed my time here and I will miss the whole club. The people around the place, players and support staff are amazing.”
Pukki went on to thank supporters and vowed to try and help Norwich achieve promotion via the play-offs this season – currently four points off a play-off spot in seventh position, as he added: “I feel I have a special relationship with Norwich and our supporters. I’ve always had a positive feeling from them.
“I hope I help give them one final gift with a few goals and a positive end to the season.
“Obviously, there is still a lot riding on these final few games. All my focus is on this season and doing everything we can to achieve success. We know we can still achieve our targets.”
Norwich’s Sporting Director, Stuart Webber described Pukki’s decision to announce his departure as “always a sad day” for the club whenever “a club legend decides to leave.”
Webber though praised Pukki for his successful contributions on and off the pitch, as he commented: “We’re proud of everything he has achieved. He’s had five amazing years with us, scoring an incredible amount of goals.
“He has been part of some of the greatest moments that we’ve experienced and will rightly be remembered as a club legend for a long time.
“He’s been an incredible teammate and has represented this club with distinction. He knows that he’ll forever be welcome back at both the Lotus Training Centre and Carrow Road.
“We thank him for everything he has done. We wish him and his family the best of luck with whatever comes next and hope that there are few more magic moments for him in the weeks ahead.”
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