Why West Brom have just moved miles closer to Alex Palmer transfer return
West Bromwich Albion may have seen the final domino fall in their Alex Palmer reunion plan.
Albion have already made moves to strengthen their goalkeeping department this summer.
Max O'Leary inked a three-year contract to remain at The Hawthorns for the long-term in early June, whilst Matt Ingram has also joined on a two-year deal from Oxford United.
However, neither of those two shot-stoppers may win the starting gloves for Albion next season if Palmer makes his way back to B71 this summer.
The 29-year-old is a backup option for newly-promoted Premier League side Ipswich Town, having only made 12 appearances for them in all competitions last season.
And now, the Tractor Boys may just have pushed him even closer to the Portman Road exit door, and thus in turn, back to the Baggies.
Why Alex Palmer has been kicked to the kerb by Ipswich
West Brom News has been discussing the potential for Palmer to come back to West Brom throughout this summer.
A proven performer at Championship level, he could provide the uber-reliable safe pair of hands for James Morrison to build his defensive spine around.
Many Albion fans have been wishing for his eventual return to the West Midlands ever since his February 2025 transfer to Ipswich, and now that scenario may never have been closer to happening.
That's because Ipswich have on Tuesday announced they've signed highly-rated goalkeeper Kayne van Oevelen from Dutch side FC Volendam.
The 22-year-old has already made 64 competitive first-team appearances for the then-Eredivisie outfit, including starting all 32 of his Dutch top-flight games in 2025-26.
As per FotMob, no Eredivisie keeper made more saves than Van Oevelen's 149 or created more chances than his three last season, whilst he also made zero errors leading to goals.
So, despite Volendam suffering relegation, Van Oevelen clearly wasn't to blame and looks like a young shot-stopper with plenty of ability, as well as now having the potential to be Ipswich's long-term number one.
With Palmer now third-choice at best in Suffolk, just how good was he during his time at West Brom, and what would it say about his chances of becoming the starting goalkeeper at The Hawthorns once again?
How Palmer was one of Championship's best at West Brom
A product of West Brom's academy system, Palmer had to wait 11 years for his Albion first-team debut in August 2021, which came in a 6-0 League Cup defeat to Arsenal.
It wasn't until the 2022-23 campaign that he finally ascended into the role of Albion's number one goalkeeper, and he never really looked back from there.
Per FotMob, his 0.96 goals prevented in the Championship in 2022-23 ranked him in the top 17.3 per cent of second-tier goalkeepers that year.
Meanwhile, 2023-24 saw him finish joint-top with Leeds' Illan Meslier for clean sheets with 18, whilst he also saved three penalties and made zero errors leading to goals that term too.
And before joining Ipswich, Palmer had kept 11 clean sheets in 30 Championship games in 2024-25, as well as recording a save percentage of 74.3 per cent and, again, making zero errors leading to goals.
So, for a keeper who is still in the prime years of his career and surely desperate to play more regular football, West Brom, if the door has indeed now opened for them, must take full advantage and bring him back to where he belongs.