Joe Roberts

Sat 29 July 2023 13:15, UK

West Brom should cash in on Grady Diangana after the £18million man failed to meet expectations at The Hawthorns.

Diangana made the big-money move to the Baggies after helping them win promotion to the Premier League, but the former West Ham attacker has proved underwhelming at West Brom.

In the three seasons at the club following their promotion season, he has only scored seven goals, which does not even surpass the eight goals he scored in the Premier League, showing that he was not the marquee signing the Hawthorns faithful hoped he’d be.

Daily Mail journalist Tom Collomosse tweeted (28 July) that recently-promoted Burnley and recently-relegated Leicester City were eyeing up a move for Diangana, with many West Brom fans seeming happy to let him go.

Should he move, any new club will hope he can improve on his finishing but his other stats show that there is a quality player in Diangana and perhaps a move would let him unleash his full goalscoring potential.

Diangana is skilled at ball progression, with 5.45 progressive passes per 90 (83rd percentile) [FBRef]. However, he finds shooting and finishing difficult, with only 1.82 shots per 90 (36th percentile).

It is no wonder his goals have dried up, so perhaps an attack-minded manager like Vincent Kompany or Leicester’s new boss Enzo Maresca could improve this aspect of his game and make him a goal threat once again.

While the Baggies are unlikely to recoup much of the £18million they spent in Diangana in 2020 [Sky Sports], their need to sell this summer to reinvest could tempt them to sell. However, with two years remaning on his current West Brom contract, the club will not be forced to sell him too cheaply and if prospective clubs are keen and see his potential they may cough up a decent fee.

West Brom also recently announced the addition of Brighton forward Jeremy Sarmiento on loan, who covers many of the same areas as Diangana and has been deemed a high-quality signing by the Baggies.

With 12 Premier League appearances last season and three World Cup matches for Ecuador under his belt, Baggies fans will be much more excited at the prospect of Sarmiento being in the side than watching Diangana underwhelm yet again.

Perhaps the move is better for Diangana too. The move to West Brom clearly has not worked out as anyone would have liked, so a fresh challenge could do a lot to revitalise the 25 years old’s career.

It may benefit Diangana to remain in the Championship too, as the Premier League may be a cut above his current ability, so Leicester could be a good destination.

For West Brom however, they need cash. Financial reports of the club revealed the extent of West Brom money worries, with the report stating: “Should the forecasted player trading not be achieved, the group would need to both maintain existing and find further sources of investment in order to bridge its cashflow position until appropriate player transactions are fulfilled.”

The club clearly need to make sales, and Diangana is a player who could fetch a decent fee.

While it was not the fairytale move that Baggies fans hoped for, perhaps Diangana can do himself and the club a favour by departing.

In other West Brom news, a new Nottingham Forest signing has sent Jeremy Sarmiento a three-word message following the Ecuadorian‘s move to the Hawthorns.