West Brom starlet Reyes Cleary will stay until December, but no contract has been agreed
West Brom prospect Reyes Cleary will remain at the club until December despite his contract expiring, according to the Birmingham Mail.
Eyebrows were raised when the 18-year-old appeared in a preseason friendly against Stratford Town last week, despite there being no announcement of a new contract.
Unfortunately for Albion, the Birmingham Mail found that he has not signed a new contract but will stay at the club until December due to the terms of his scholarship agreement.
The report explained that scholarships do not run on the same timescale as professional contracts, running year-to-year instead of season-to-season.
While this does mean that Albion will get to keep him a while longer, it also leaves the door wide open for other clubs to take him off their hands if they do not tie him down.
Disappointing development
Fans were given a bit of hope with Cleary still playing for the club, but this will come as a massive disappointment.
It cannot be understated just how promising Cleary is, with the young striker scoring 16 goals in 12 games in the Under-18 Premier League as well as seven goals in 12 Premier League 2 matches.
He has attracted interest from European giants such as Bayern Munich and Arsenal and the Express & Star reported in May that he had rejected professional terms at The Hawthorns.
It was hoped that he may have had a change of heart when he made his return to the Under-23s last week, but this newest report has dashed those hopes.
Cleary is now just the latest in a line of wonderkids to leave Albion’s academy and fans now are rightly frustrated that they are developing someone else’s player.
It is a disappointing development for Baggies fans as they lose yet another starlet, but he is definitely one for other fans to watch out for in the future.
In other West Brom news, Steve Bruce has revealed the club want a new midfielder.