Why West Brom can sign Brandon Thomas-Asante for cheaper in January after reunion rumours
West Bromwich Albion were linked with a late summer move to re-sign Brandon Thomas-Asante.
The Baggies tried to bring in one more number nine ahead of the deadline, despite the arrivals of Jimmy-Jay Morgan and Barney Stewart.
Southampton's Cameron Archer was a top target, but finances priced Albion out of a permanent move, as he made a move to France instead.
Then rumours of a return move for Thomas-Asante circulated, with many Baggies fans split on whether they should bring him back or not.
The versatile forward was sold to Coventry City in August of 2024, and has since helped the Sky Blues gain promotion to the Premier League.
But with that comes a severe lack of play time for Thomas-Asante, while West Brom may still be keen on signing another number nine in January.
Why Brandon Thomas-Asante could be signed for cheaper in January
West Brom pushed to sign Thomas-Asante ahead of the summer window's deadline, but were not able to get a deal done.
One of the problems that the Black Country Club ran into when trying to re-sign the 27-year-old was time, which they were not left with much of.
It's said that Coventry did make the Ghana international available for a permanent transfer, but James Morrison's side preferred a loan move instead.
Thomas-Asante started in Coventry's opening Premier League game to Arsenal, where Frank Lampard's side lost 3-0.
He's since not been in either of Coventry's starting line-ups in the league since, and is quickly falling down the pecking order.
Thomas-Asante's stock is likely to fall going into the January window, which could help West Brom secure a move permanently this time.
He will only have 18 months remaining on his deal at the Coventry Building Society Arena come the winter window, which will automatically help lower his value from what it was this summer.
How much could Thomas-Asante cost West Brom in January?
Thomas-Asante had a stellar first half to last season, but an injury de-railed his momentum, and he failed to find his feet again upon returning.
Despite this, he finished the season with 13 goals to his name, proving to be a top Championship striker.
Transfermarkt currently has his value at over £13million, but this is most likely extremely boosted after Coventry's promotion.
With the way the Sky Blues have started the season, they will need to make their own signings some the winter, and could be desperate to raise funds.
They would do well to find anyone who would pay £10m for the forward, let alone £13m.
If Thomas-Asante continues to sit on the sidelines, it would be no surprise if that £13m price tag was halved come January, which could work for Shilen Patel.