Jose Cordoba's high ceiling is a key reason Johannes Hoff Thorup desperately wanted him to join his football revolution at Norwich City. 

The Panamanian defender is City's only signing of the summer so far and has impressed in performances for his country during the Copa America, which will see him have a delayed return to his new club. 

Cordoba's Carrow Road arrival is the result of extensive scouting—both using data and video— as they sought to uncover a ball-playing left-sided defender who could help Thorup implement his desired game model at Carrow Road after Ben Gibson's exit.

The combination of the 23-year-old's characteristics and potential to eventually surpass the Canaries were the key factors behind the decision to sign him this summer. 

"I’ve been watching him closely at the tournament, and of course, without being disrespectful, we hope that these players come home as fast as possible," City boss Thorup told the Pink Un. 

"But he did well, to be fair, and so did Panama. He performed well, and he's a very physical, very strong defender. He's good one on one. He's comfortable on the ball, he dares to dribble to bring the ball forward.

"But I think both for now, but especially also looking into the future, he's a player that can be even better and perform at an even higher level than this.

"That's also important for us when we bring in players that they have a performance level for now, but also some level where we can see that they can actually improve."

Thorup's style of play will set Norwich up to be possession-based and represents a clear shift in ideas from that of his predecessor David Wagner. 

Johannes Hoff Thorup wanted Jose Cordoba as part of his Norwich City revolution.Johannes Hoff Thorup wanted Jose Cordoba as part of his Norwich City revolution. (Image: Focus Images)

In the early weeks of pre-season and ahead of Saturday's friendly opener against Northampton Town, the Dane revealed that his methods have been met positively by the City squad, especially those in forward areas of the pitch. 

"I think there is and without mentioning too many names, but we already had conversations with some of the players coming back to us and saying, ‘Okay, this is really a way for them which is also very good’ because they are in more offensive situations," the Dane said. 

"We create even more chances and they can see through training that hopefully we'll get into a lot of situations in the game where we can score goals, or at least have chances.

"So, the offensive players also have that feeling. That's the feedback so far."