Tricky winger Jon Rowe enjoyed an outstanding season at Norwich City last year, which earned him a move to Ligue 1 giants Olympique de Marseille during the summer transfer window. However, his switch to the French side has not quite gone according to plan so far.
A product of the Canaries’ youth system, Rowe made his Premier League debut for his boyhood club in 2021 shortly after signing his first professional contract. His first full senior season at Carrow Road was hampered by injuries, but he eventually broke through under manager David Wagner at the start of last season. Rowe then racked up numerous individual awards and helped Norwich secure a top-six finish by contributing 13 goals and three assists in 38 appearances across all competitions.
The England under-21 international attracted significant transfer interest last summer, yet his time in East Anglia ended on a sour note in August when coach Johannes Hoff Thorup revealed that Rowe had refused to play prior to his departure. His move to Marseille was subsequently confirmed as an initial season-long loan with an obligation to buy for £17 million.
Rowe got off to a dream start with the Phocaeans by scoring an added-time winner in the Derby des Olympiques against Lyon on September 22, in just his fourth appearance for the club. However, he has struggled to replicate that early brilliance. The 21-year-old has not been given a starting spot in either Ligue 1 or the Coupe de France since an early November game against Angers, playing only 97 minutes off the bench in his last nine outings. This limited game-time has sparked questions about his future at Marseille and whether he made the right decision in leaving Norwich last summer.
Norwich fan pundit Zeke Downes believes that, in hindsight, Rowe might have been better off staying at the club for another year. “It’s hard to say if Jon Rowe made a mistake by leaving Norwich, because things could have worked out really well,” Downes told FLW. “I didn’t like how he left, but many of our players would have jumped at the chance to move to Marseille. In hindsight, he’s not getting much game-time now, and he could have stayed here for another year—one that might have seen him play alongside Borja Sainz. He’s now lost the respect of many fans. Personally, I understand why he made the move at the time, but looking back, it can be seen as a misstep.”
Unfortunately for Rowe, that crucial early goal for Marseille may have worked against him, as he has been unable to recapture that form over the past five months, despite expectations that he would continue to flourish under manager Roberto De Zerbi. After scoring the opener in a 1-1 draw against Angers two weeks following his first goal, he provided assists in wins over Montpellier and Nantes—though his contribution on November 3 turned out to be his last in the league so far.
In a dramatic turn of events, reports via L’Equipe in January suggested that Rowe had lost favor with De Zerbi, and that Marseille were exploring the market for a new destination for the former Norwich winger—even though their contractual obligation to buy doesn’t kick in until the summer. Rowe has stayed at the Stade Velodrome past the winter window and now appears set to remain with the club for the rest of the season, although he will likely spend the campaign as a bench option.
Whether he can force his way back into the starting lineup remains to be seen, especially since the Phocaeans manager has shifted to a 3-4-1-2 formation featuring wing-backs—a system that doesn’t suit Rowe’s attributes or preferred position. His future in southeast France beyond the summer now looks quite uncertain, and while the move initially seemed like a smart career progression, he may well come to regret leaving Norwich so soon given the struggles of the past few months.
