West Brom valuation rewarded as John Swift essential for Baggies to have a successful season
West Brom nearly lost John Swift towards the end of the transfer window, with Championship rivals Coventry City showing an interest in the midfielder, according to Tom Collomosse.
The Daily Mail journalist reported on deadline day (1 September) that the Sky Blues were interested in signing the 28-year-old over the summer but were put off by the Baggies’ valuation, a move that could well prove greatly important for Carlos Corberan’s side this year.
Swift has started all five of the Baggies opening Championship games and has already managed to score four goals from his attacking midfield position, securing the highest average rating for any player at the Hawthorns this year of 7.49 (Fotmob).
So far this season, West Brom have started their goals around their side quite evenly, with no one finding the net more than Swift, despite Corberan’s side scoring the third most goals per game, with an average of two, only bettered by Norwich City ad Ipswich Town.
The 28-year-old is yet to register an assist but has created six chances for his teammates while registering an excellent pass completion rate of 85% and it is more than likely the assists will begin to follow suit after he managed to provide for his teammates on nine occasions last season.
Of attacking midfielders in the Championship in the last year, few are more creative than the former Reading midfielder, his expected assisted goals rate of 0.31 per 90 minutes played, places him in the top 6% of his positional peers (Fbref).
Few players manage as many shot-creating actions per game with Swift’s 5.21 per match seeing him place in the 94th percentile of the attacking midfielders in the division, while he also manages an impressive 5.49 progressive passes a game.
Keeping quality
Carlos Corberan admitted it has been an incredible and massive effort by the Baggies to provide him with the squad he currently has at his possession following the transfer window, given the difficult financial situation at the Hawthorns [Express and Star, 5 September].
It would have been very easy for West Brom to allow Swift to depart at the first sign of some cash when Coventry expressed an interest, but by standing by their valuation and protecting their asset, they have provided both Corberan and his side with a big boost.
Swift may not have quite reached the same standard in a Baggies shirt as he did when he was playing for Reading, but the signs and reminders of what he is capable of remain. After all, he was one of the division’s brightest midfielders in his final campaign with the Royals.
The striking options at the Hawthorns, with Josh Maja still waiting for his first goal and Brandom Thomas-Asante only managing to find the net seven times last season, underperforming his xG of 9.94 (Fotmob), so it is essential Corberan’s side find goals from elsewhere.
So far Swift is the man scoring those all-important goals and the stats suggest he will also be a key creator for the Baggies, even if nobody is currently finishing the chances he’s creating.
Hopefully, he can keep up his excellent start to the season and continue to remind everyone of just what a threat he can be in the Championship.
In other West Brom news, Tony Pulis has lifted the lid on Serge Gnabry’s difficult time at the Hawthorns