Report – West Brom consider summer bid for 26y/o striker
West Brom could make a move for Fenerbahce striker Vedat Muriqi this summer, according to Turkish outlet Fanatik.
The 26-year-old has hit 15 goals in 28 appearances so far this season, and it is understood that the Baggies are weighing up the possibility of a swoop, with a fee of around £18 million being touted.
They could face competition from Tottenham Hotspur, however, with Jose Mourinho’s men also named as long-time admirers of the Kosovo international.
The report also states that any potential deal will hinge on whether or not Albion are able to secure promotion back to the top flight this season.
As such, it is understood that the club will wait to make their move until the situation surrounding the Coronavirus pandemic becomes clearer.
However, Fanatik also suggest that the pandemic could force Fenerbahce into a sale at the end of the season, with the global health crisis lowering asking prices across the transfer market.
Muriqi is certainly an intriguing prospect.
At 6’4″ he is a real physical specimen, and his average of 5.8 aerial duels won per game, as per Whoscored, far eclipses Charlie Austin’s total of 1.7 per 90 minutes this season, for instance.
Muriqi is much more than just a battering ram though.
His key pass average of 1.5 per game, plus his tally of six assists, shows that he knows how to bring those around him into the game too.
Again, as a point of reference, Austin has 0.4 key passes per game.
The Kosovo international even scored against England back in September too, converting a penalty in a breathless 5-3 European Championship qualifier.
£18 million doesn’t seem like a hugely unreasonable fee for a player who has hit double figures this season and is entering the prime of his career, and provided we do get promoted – and assuming we can stave off that long-standing interest from Spurs – this could be a really decent piece of business.
In other West Brom news, ‘100%’ – Former Albion player claims he would ‘jump’ at chance to return to Baggies.