People can say what they want about Nolan but this is how I saw him during his time here:
2008/09: Thought he was a good signing at first because we needed some bite in midfield and he seemed to fit the profile (of course the months that followed showed that he was really underwhelming. Did nothing of note really).
2009/10: Fantastic goal record. His goals helped us to gain promotion and became one of the more senior/influential figures in the squad. He was an important player for us the year. Though it became clear that there were limitations in terms of fitness/athleticism.
2010/11: Hughton developed a system which allowed Nolan to play a really key role in the team. Yes, as evidenced at times in the Championship season, he was a limited player and was often a weakness in CM - it became increasingly apparent that we lacked movement in the middle (though you could say that signing Tiote was key as he was able to provide a lot of cover for Nolan's main weakness). Having said that, he was an important player in the team last season - this was mainly down to his influence as captain on and off the pitch and of course his goals. His goals helped us to stay up really, he had the habit of being at the right place at the right time which was of the utmost importance. One thing I won't ever forget is his hat trick in that memorable game against the mackems at St. James'. Once Carroll left, his influence on the pitch slightly declined but he still managed to score some important goals.
Post 2010/11 season: I was quite angry when we sold Nolan tbh. We had sold our influential captain and top goalscorer and I thought such a sale made no sense. There were initial concerns from people on how Cabaye, his "replacement", would do in the PL (questions on whether he would adapt and all that) - let's be frank, not many people had an idea on how Yohan was going to do for us when we first signed him. Yes, we were aware of his track record (winning Ligue 1 with Lille) but very few of us had actually seen him play. Of course the months that went by showed us that Cabaye was indeed PL-capable (don't think he's fully adapted as yet but he is getting there) and has since become such a key player for us. The main thing that was made clear was we had some movement in CM, something which we lacked from when Nolan was in the middle during his time here.
So in the end, Nolan's sale turned out to be the best move for both parties - Kevin got the contract he wanted (which we weren't prepared to offer him) and we got our money back for him. His "replacement" has done well for us so what's done is done and people just have to move on. There's certainly no ill-feeling from myself when it comes to talking about Nolan. I will continue to respect him for his contribution to the club (primarily helping us to get back on our feet).
