BBC journalist makes transfer claim about who Allardyce’s first signing could be
The BBC’s chief football writer Phil McNulty has speculated that West Brom manager Sam Allardyce may ponder a move to sign Cenk Tosun in January.
Allardyce was officially unveiled to the media as the new West Brom head coach on Thursday and he confirmed there could be money to spend in January.
Naturally, this has led to some reports linking Allardyce with moves to sign some of his former players.
James Tomkins has already been mooted as a potential January target, with Allardyce seeking defensive reinforcements.
Allardyce signed Tosun during his short reign at Everton, with the Turkish striker arriving for a huge £27million from Besiktas.
The striker has failed to replicate any of the form he displayed in Turkey and is now out of favour at Goodison Park.
A huge gamble
West Brom’s problems in front of goal will be one of the biggest challenges that Allardyce will have to overcome.
Karlan Grant has failed to hit the ground running in the Premier League this season following his big-money move in the summer.
The striker has just one goal to his name and has looked short of confidence in the top flight.
Tosun, on the other hand, simply has not produced enough in England to justify the £27million fee spent on him.
As per Transfermarkt, Tosun scored over 100 goals during his time in Turkey with both Besiktas and Gaziantepspor.
The numbers soon fall down when looking back over his Premier League career, where he has scored just 10 times in 52 to matches.
During his first full campaign with the Toffees – the 2018/19 season – he recorded just three goals in the Premier League, which equates to a goal every 350 minutes.
A loan spell at Crystal Palace during the 2019/20 season did not yield much success either – scoring once in five appearances. The deal was then cut short after the striker suffered a serious knee injury – another potential red flag for the Baggies.
In other West Brom news, Allardyce admits ‘Difficult’ West Brom transfer task when discussing January window
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