West Brom talks to sign Celtic loan star Mikey Johnston in permanent deal speculated
Don Goodman says he expects West Brom will already have reached out to Celtic regarding a permanent transfer for Mikey Johnston.
The 24-year-old has scored seven goals and assisted one more in 14 Championship appearances for Albion since joining on loan in January.
Johnston's form may well have attracted interest from other clubs, but the Baggies could get a headstart on their rivals.
"The cat is out of the bag so to speak," Goodman told West Brom News. "Anyone who has seen him during his short time at West Bromwich Albion will be going 'wow, what an impact'.
"It's okay having all that ability, but how many players like that do you see who don't impact games and matches like they should? There are lots and lots of players out there with equal ability as Johnston who don't have the same impact.
"I don't know whether or not anything behind the scenes has been discussed with Celtic. They're clearly happy with him to be away from the football club for now.
"But from an early stage you'd have though West Brom would be trying to negotiate some sort of transfer fee for a reasonable price to take him in the summer, regardless of what league they're playing in."
Mikey Johnston contract situation at Celtic
The irony of Johnston's impressive form at The Hawthorns is that he has probably been too good for Albion to now keep him at the club.
That is the big risk with loan deals as opposed to permanent transfers, although Albion's hand was of course somewhat forced in January.
Johnston will have two years to run on his contract at Celtic when he returns in the summer, so the Scottish side hold all the cards.
Quite how much it will take to persuade Celtic to cash in remains to be seen, but this is unquestionably a deal Albion should be looking to sort.
Earning promotion to the Premier League will certainly strengthen the Baggies' case, otherwise he may have a pick of clubs higher up the ladder.
For more West Brom news, follow us on Facebook or join our brand new WhatsApp Channel for instant updates to be sent straight to your phone.