Steve Bruce will make Reading’s John Swift his first West Bromwich Albion transfer
Steve Bruce is set to make his first signing at West Brom boss in the form of former Reading midfielder John Swift, according to John Percy.
The 26-year-old will arrive on a free transfer, after the Royals made a last-ditch attempt to re-sign him earlier this month (Berkshire Live), which has apparently failed.
Albion have been targeting a number of out-of-contract players as the Baggies boss looks to shake up his squad following a disappointing Championship finish.
It appears that has started to bear fruit after Percy announced on Twitter Thursday night (26 May): “Steve Bruce is set to make former Reading midfielder John Swift his first signing at WBA.
“Swift was Reading’s top scorer this season and will join West Brom on a free transfer”.
The midfielder scored 11 Championship goals this season, and assisted a further 14 as Reading narrowly avoided relegation.
Starting point
This is a significant positive for Bruce in his hopes of injecting some creativity into his midfield, as Swift was heavily involved in the scoring this season.
The former Chelsea player has scored or assisted a total of 72 goals in 202 appearances for the Berkshire club and should provide a much-needed boost to the centre of the Baggies team.
Having arrived at the Hawthorns just after the close of the January transfer window, the former Newcastle manager has had little chance to mould the squad in his image so far.
The finances are tight at the club so he has focused heavily on free agents, as he is believed to also be targeting the likes of Joe Rothwell, Darragh Lenihan and Jed Wallace.
Landing Swift is a strong start to what will need to be a fairly significant overhaul if the club want to avoid a repeat of the uneven and ultimately very poor season that just ended.
In other West Brom news, one exiting first-team star posted a heartfelt goodbye on social media on his way out of the club.
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