View: West Brom must scrap reported hunt to re-sign player from PL rivals
West Brom are reportedly keen on moving for former striker Dwight Gayle this summer if the 31-year-old does not agree to a new deal with Newcastle United.
According to the Newcastle Chronicle, the Baggies are keeping tabs on Gayle’s situation with a view to making a move for the former Crystal Palace man if he becomes a free agent.
Gayle spent the 2018-19 season at The Hawthorns and starred as West Brom made a run to the Championship playoffs, scoring 24 league goals in 40 appearances (via WhoScored).
However, with Gayle now moving into his mid-thirties, this is not a move that makes sense for the Baggies moving forward. He is a proven goalscorer at the Championship level but West Brom already have someone in that mould in the shape of Karlan Grant, while the Newcastle man has never shown he can consistently score goals in the Premier League
Grant is just 23 and scored 19 Championship goals for a struggling Huddersfield side last season (via WhoScored). He may have endured a tough start to the season, with just one league goals from seven appearances, but that is in the context of a struggling Baggies team that have not been creating opportunities, with only three times taking fewer shots per game on average (via WhoScored).
Most importantly though, West Brom should be looking to build young and follow the philosophy that got them promoted. Whether they stay in the Premier League or not, the most important players in this squad are those in their early 20s like Matheus Pereira, Darnell Furlong, Grady Diangana and Grant.
Rather than the experience of Charlie Austin or Hal Robson-Kanu firing them to promotion last season, it was Pereira and Diangana that proved the difference-makers. Moving for Gayle more than anything is a move that lacks inspiration and suggests there is not enough creativity within the scouting department.
As West Brom look to build in the future, the goal is to find the next Pereira, not to bring back a player that was effective three years ago.
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