OPINION
With West Brom having suffered the ignominy of relegation from the Premier League last season, manager Darren Moore has spent the summer building up a side he feels are ready for a push at promotion – but with just days to go, it seems his plans are not yet complete.
The Baggies have already seen six new faces through the door on a mix of permanent and loan deals, three of those coming from the Premier League, and that experience of the top flight could well be the difference between success and failure.
There appears to be another top tier transfer target for Moore in the shape of Liverpool’s speed demon forward Sheyi Ojo, with the Reds said by the Sunday Sun (5 August, Page 51) to have been given the green light to seal a £12million move.
However, a swoop for the 21-year-old winger does not seem simple, with Premier League sides Watford and Fulham both said to be keen on snapping him up, Liverpool reportedly open to a bidding war for his signature.
Now while the Hornets and the Cottagers both have spending power beyond the reaches of West Brom, the fact that they are both said to be seeking a loan should hand the Baggies advantage in sealing his capture, and with Moore’s men seemingly willing to spend £12million, it trounces what the other pair of clubs would likely be open to offer.
As such, the midlands outfit, despite being in the Championship, must be the front runners in this battle, and can swipe their rivals aside in the hunt for Ojo to seal what could well be the missing piece of the puzzle in their bid for promotion.