OPINION
There will be not be many West Brom fans out there who will be calling for too many attacking reinforcements over the January transfer market, with their current strike force the most potent in the Championship.
The partnership of Jay Rodriguez and Dwight Gayle, supported by the likes of Harvey Barnes and Matt Phillips, have seen the Baggies net more than anyone else in the second tier this season as they make a bright start with their push for a return to the Premier League.
With the massive money the top flight brings absent for at least this season, the Hawthorns outfit will have to spend savvy over the next couple of months, including next summer, when they will be hoping to be preparing for a campaign back among the elite of English football.
One area they could take full advantage of would be players who are set to be free agents in the summer, with the ability to snap them up on pre-contract deals from January – and there is one name who sticks out like a sore thumb.
Step forward West Ham’s Andy Carroll – the nine cap English hitman one of those with an uncertain future on the horizon.
Standing at 6’4″ (source: Transfermarkt), the 29-year-old would bring something the Baggies are lacking in right now – height and power up front – and while there is still plenty of time until the promotion places are decided, he would be a real boon to them no matter what division they are playing in.
If they get promoted, there is little doubting Carroll’s ability to change a game with his physical presence and natural goal scoring ability, while having him in the Championship would be an almost sure-fire way to secure promotion.
They will have to act fast if they want his capture on a free, which is why that pre-contract deal in January would be a masterstroke by Darren Moore and the club.