West Brom are in a very healthy position as they embark on the Championship title run-in but now have their nearest challengers breathing down their neck.
Tonight they take a break from this with Newcastle United in town for the FA Cup fifth round and ahead of the match The Athletic’s Steve Madeley offered a Q&A where he spoke about the future of rising star Nathan Ferguson.
What’s he said?
The Baggies suffered their first defeat in seven matches on Saturday as Wigan Athletic clinched all three points, which meant Leeds were only one point behind them in second place.
Although both sides still occupy a substantial advantage over the playoffs.
Ferguson, who hasn’t featured since a loss to Cardiff in January, was on the verge of leaving for Crystal Palace last month before complications with his medical arose.
The deal fell through and he’s been left to see his contract out at the Hawthorns but Madeley cannot see him donning the navy and white stripes ever again. He said:
Mere formality
The 19-year-old has played 21 times for West Brom in the Championship, where his performances attracted interest from the likes of Tottenham Hotspur, Atletico Madrid and Juventus.
But it was the Eagles that looked set to land him for £11m (add-ons included) before Deadline Day but the versatile defender has now had surgery to resolve the surprise knee issue.
The Palace chairman, Steve Parish, has since revealed his confidence of clinching the youngster this summer in an interview on their official club website.
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Therefore, it seems highly likely that Madeley is right – we won’t see the Albion academy graduate feature ever again. It is surely a mere formality that he joins the Premier League outfit for compensation alone, meaning Slaven Bilic has missed out on a potential eight-figure fee to boost his coffers.
Lee Peltier was signed to replace him in January, and the Croatian is also able to call upon Dara O’Shea and Darnell Furlong at right-back with Kieran Gibbs and Conor Townsend holding fort on the other side.
For away day veterans only: Can you name all of these defunct stadiums?
And in other news, West Brom players have been reacting to Dwight Gayle’s latest Instagram post…