West Brom had a pretty busy transfer window last summer in terms of bringing in new players in and moving some out of the club.
Looking ahead to this summer’s window, it seems as though a clue has already emerged over one potential deal which could take place at The Hawthorns before the start of next season.
What’s the news?
In a recent West Brom mailbag article from The Athletic, Baggies journalist Steve Madeley was asked whether or not there will be a big overhaul of players at the Midlands club during the upcoming summer transfer window.
In response, Madeley had this to say about the future of a couple of loan players currently at the club: “Matt Clarke’s loan from Brighton will expire, as will Jayson Molumby’s, but there’s a good chance West Brom will trigger a clause to make his move permanent.”
Since arriving at Albion last August on loan from Premier League club Brighton with an option to buy, the midfielder has made 24 appearances in the Championship for the Baggies, starting just 12 times.
In those matchees, the Irishman has only found the back of the net on one occasion and failed to provide any assists, also racking up more yellow cards (eight) than any other player in Steve Bruce’s squad and one red card as well.
With just 21 tackles won and 18 interceptions made, the Baggies have had to rely on a few other players to help the team stay as defensively strong as possible. Even from an attacking point of view, the 22-year-old hasn’t blown anyone away, as only three of his 14 shots at goal have been on target.
Fans will be seething
According to WhoScored, the midfielder has earned himself an underwhelming overall performance rating of 6.54/10, making him one of the lowest-rated outfield players currently in the squad to have started more than one league game in this campaign.
Taking all this into account, it doesn’t seem like the Brighton loanee hasn’t done enough to convince us that the Baggies should use their option to sign him permanently, which could make a lot of West Brom fans unhappy if the club puts some of their transfer budget towards such a deal.
However, if the 22-year-old can have a strong end to his season in terms of his performances, this could sway some of the fans into thinking that he might yet be an important figure for the team in the future, but only if he improves.
In other news – Cost £0, now worth £2.7m: West Brom struck gold on “unbelievable” gem who is “like a sponge”