West Brom negotiate deal to sign available player with 250+ PL apps – journalist
West Brom are negotiating a deal to sign former Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic, according to Championat journalist Andrey Pankov.
The Russian reporter wrote on his personal Twitter account on Wednesday that free agent Ivanovic, 36, could head to The Hawthorns after being released by Zenit St Petersburg at the end of last season.
Ivanovic captained Zenit to their sixth Russian Premier League title last term, appearing 35 appearances in all competitions and scoring four goals in the process.
Ivanovic will be most famously known for the time he spent at Chelsea, in which he made 261 Premier League appearances, won the league title three times, one Champions League, a Europa League and three FA Cups.
West Brom fans want to see the club continue reinforcing Slaven Bilic’s squad up until the transfer window closes next month – but is Ivanovic someone who’d be a good signing considering his age?
Albion lost a fair bit of experience at the end of last season when Chris Brunt, Gareth Barry, Lee Peltier and Ali Al-Habsi all left The Hawthorns.
Ivanovic has plenty of experience – who can argue with someone who has so many Premier League appearances and titles to his name?
The fact Ivanovic played so many times in a tough Russian league last season also suggests he has something left in the tank and his legs might not have completely gone just yet.
He’s not going to be the fastest of defenders any more and we doubt he’d be able to play at right-back the same way he did for Chelsea, with the Serbian veteran more suited to a centre-back role now.
With that in mind, Bilic already has four centre-backs plus Dara O’Shea to call on if needed.
Ivanovic is available for free but his wages might be a bit of a waste of money.
In other West Brom news, fans are wowed by this transfer update.
Be sure to follow West Brom News on Facebook and Twitter for 24/7 updates on the Baggies and more exclusive interviews with Kevin Phillips.