West Brom to face difficulty in pursuit of permanent Mikey Johnston transfer
Dan Bardell believes that West Brom will struggle to sign Mikey Johnston on a permanent deal from Celtic due to the potential fee the Scottish Premiership champions could demand.
Johnston spent the second half of last season on loan with the Baggies and became an important member of Carlos Corberan’s squad.
After the defeat to Southampton in the play-off semi-final, the Republic of Ireland international returned to Glasgow at the end of his loan.
West Brom might look to sign him permanently this summer but Sky Sports and talkSPORT journalist Bardell has suggested they might struggle financially to do so.
Speaking exclusively to West Brom News, Bardell said: “Carlos Corberan has had to heavily rely on free transfers and loans. There is no doubt that the loan of Mikey Johnson last season was a success.
“He’s a player they would want back but his form has meant that the fee rises. Celtic won’t demand an unreasonable fee but it might still be out of West Brom’s reach even under new ownership.
“It’s going to be a difficult one for them to work out as I don’t think they’ve got anyone they can sell of any value really.
“It’s a shame because he’s a player that’s done really well, it’s helped his career, he helped West Brom get into the top six but because of how well he’s done, it’s been made difficult to sign him permanently.“
West Brom could miss out on Mikey Johnston deal
When West Brom missed out on promotion to the Premier League they may have missed the opportunity to sign Johnston permanently.
Had they achieved promotion then the opportunity to sign him full time might have presented itself but a combination of a fee that might be out of their reach and increased competition for his signature makes a full deal hard to complete.
The 25-year-old registered seven goals and one assist across just over 1,100 minutes [FotMob] of Championship football and was a vital cog in the second half of the Baggies’ campaign.
Given his form at the Hawthorns, he could find himself in and among the first-team plans at Celtic Park under Brendan Rogers next season.
This may see the Scottish Champions keep hold of the winger even if the Baggies were able to stump up whatever fee they would demand.
Losing Johnston at the end of his loan is certainly a blow and he will be tough to replace after the form he displayed last campaign.
Corberan must move on and consider different targets if the Irishman is out of reach this summer.
In other West Brom news, Patel has sent a message following a confirmed player departure from the club.
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