The signing of Michael McGovern the beginning of the end for John Ruddy?

Tuesday afternoon saw Norwich City complete the signing of Northern Ireland goalkeeper Michael McGovern. McGovern, who was out of contract following his summer release from Hamilton Academical, joins City on a free transfer and in doing so links-up with former boss Alex Neil.

The 32-year-old rose to prominence during Northern Ireland’s Euro 2016 campaign, where a series of impressive performances helped his country reach the last 16 of the tournament. McGovern’s stand-out display came against Germany, when, despite a 1-0 defeat, an imperious showing resulted in comparisons being drawn to the great Pat Jennings.

Despite gaining lots of plaudits over the past month, McGovern’s career to date has been relatively unspectacular. Having never left the Scottish leagues, the shot-stopper spent the first 7 years of his career at Celtic without making a single appearance and has never commanded a transfer fee. That is not to say that he is not highly-rated in Scotland; supporters of each club where he has spent a significant amount of time - Ross County, Falkirk and Hamilton - all speak well of him, and it has usually been McGovern’s decision, rather than his club’s, that has led to his release each time.

He is clearly a good player, and he represents a solid signing for almost any Championship side - especially on a free transfer. Perhaps the most intriguing thing about the deal, however, is what it means for the future of current number one John Ruddy. Numerous reports have suggested that McGovern snubbed an offer from Southampton as he didn’t want to be back-up to Fraser Forster. If you don’t want to be second choice at a top Premier League club, on Premier League wages, then you aren’t going to want to be second choice at Championship Norwich City. For me, it is clear: McGovern is coming to Carrow Road to be number one or, at the very least, to be very strong competition.

Even John Ruddy’s most ardent supporters will admit that he has been in a state of decline over the past few seasons - almost ever since he returned from his long-term injury picked up during the 2012/13 season. His first two seasons at the club, our promotion from the Championship and our comfortable survival in the Premier League a year later, saw Ruddy at his imperious best. Since then, however, his confidence and form has drastically dropped and he has increasingly become more of a liability, costing us points; a shadow of the keeper that used to win us so many. Having been dropped following a particularly poor spell during the middle of last season, his return to the side showed a slight upturn in form but the fact he was dropped in the first place - something that would have been unthinkable three years ago - speaks volumes of his decline.

Whether it be next summer or this, I think that the time is right for Ruddy to embark on a fresh challenge. Whilst he will always hold a special place in the hearts of many City fans, there is no doubt that a large majority have lost a certain amount of faith in his ability. By bringing in McGovern and having dropped him last season, it seems that Alex Neil feels a similar way. With this in mind, perhaps a move is the best for all parties. If it does happen, then, whilst the time feels right, it will be a sad day as one more of our 2010/11 promotion heroes departs.