If Norwich City fans were in doubt as to the importance of recruitment, the last five years have put them straight.

The difference smart recruitment has made was irrefutably evident when Emi Buendia and Teemu Pukki powered the Canaries to a delightful promotion in 2019, at a cost of just £1.5million.

Without the ability to shop in markets their rivals weren't looking at, Norwich may not have had the chance to create arguably their most entertaining team of all time. The unforgettable memories created for supporters may not have existed.

At the other end of the spectrum, it's worth considering that equally strong recruitment could have transformed their 2021-22 season, with Stuart Webber's large-scale misspend berated for its role in a miserable relegation.

What separated those two very antithetical windows was a strict set of rules that's bound clubs like Norwich since the start of 2021, when recruitment rules changed because of Brexit.

Along with the public's 2016 vote came a change to the system allowing footballers in from foreign countries, with hidden gems like Buendia and Pukki almost impossible to find in Europe.

Norwich Evening News: Emi Buendia was one of Stuart Webber's smartest pieces of business at Carrow Road.Emi Buendia was one of Stuart Webber's smartest pieces of business at Carrow Road. (Image: Paul Chesterton/Focus Images Ltd)

The pair would not have qualified, in fact, to play for Norwich had the criteria been in place when they were signed.

That underscores what a difficult job it's been for Webber and his team for the last two-and-a-half years, with their prime source of intelligent transfers and money-saving moves forcibly drying up.

It's easy to see why that has a more significant impact on a self-funding club than others, with City forced to find new ways to scout on the cheap.

Even their rapid reaction had flaws - they focused their recruitment on South America but still paid a combined £9.3million for Gabriel Sara and Marcelino Nunez as a Championship club.

Norwich Evening News: Neither Buendia nor Teemu Pukki would have been able to sign for the Canaries had the previous criteria been in place when they arrived.Neither Buendia nor Teemu Pukki would have been able to sign for the Canaries had the previous criteria been in place when they arrived. (Image: Paul Chesterton/Focus Images Ltd)

So with finances tight and the squad in need of reassembling, changes to those rules may have come at the perfect time for the Canaries.

What the FA's fresh proposal, now approved by the Home Office and effective from Wednesday's official opening of the transfer window, means is that clubs effectively have free hits to use.

Every side up and down the professional pyramid have access to at least two, while Championship and Premier League clubs can earn two more by creating a pathway for English players.

The percentage of minutes played by those players in the prior season dictates that, and Norwich's means they earn one extra player who fails to meet the requirements - three in total.

For context, that's the same number the entirety of the top flight will have, as well as Watford. Twenty-two second tier clubs will be able to sign four wildcards, but City's recruitment thus far suggests they may benefit from one more in the summer of 2024.

Of course, the decision to make these changes effective from the start of this window means they're less likely to take advantage this window. As has been communicated thoroughly alongside Webber's resignation, windows are planned months in advance.

Norwich Evening News: Webber will have planned City's transfer window months in advance.Webber will have planned City's transfer window months in advance. (Image: Daniel Hambury/Focus Images Ltd)

But for the mid and long-term this is a huge development for a club whose recruitment record had rapidly slid from being admired nationwide to its chief weakness.

The irony of Webber leaving Carrow Road just as things start to suit him again won't be lost on supporters, but this will undoubtedly affect the role of his successor as the rest of the pyramid.

Kieran Scott, head of football at Middlesbrough and mastermind behind a number of Webber's key signings, will undoubtedly fancy his chances in the market, while the likes of Blackburn Rovers and Millwall have shown their shrewdness previously.

This is a chance, however, for Norwich to reinstall themselves as a smart and creative club, as was the case until very recently.

As far as administrative legislation goes, this may well be as exciting as it can be for the NR1 faithful.