Imagine him & Johnston: West Brom can repeat Mowatt steal by signing “magic” free agent

West Bromwich Albion could get in another excellent free agent like Alex Mowatt this summer.

West Bromwich Albion have proven themselves to be shrewd operators in many a transfer window now, with large chunks of Carlos Corberan’s current squad assembled courtesy of some bargains being purchased.

Alex Mowatt is just one of a whole plethora of players that arrived into the building on a free transfer once upon a time, with the likes of other first-team names in the form of Okay Yokuslu and Jed Wallace also walking in through the door with no fee attached.

West Brom could go against the grain to re-sign Mikey Johnston this summer, however, with a mega £6m transfer fee slapped above his head by Celtic, but will continue to look for bargains elsewhere, and could land another gem using this transfer method again – if reports are correct.

West Brom interested in recently released star
According to journalist Darren Witcoop – as reported late last week – the Baggies are intrigued by the prospect of bringing new free agent Ian Poveda to the Hawthorns this summer, having just had his Leeds contract ripped up.

On loan last season with Sheffield Wednesday, where he showed signs of his dynamic best, the South American winger is wanted immediately back by his short-term South Yorkshire employers on a permanent deal now too, with Luton Town and Cardiff City also waiting in the wings to make an offer – as per Witcoop.

Poveda could see West Brom strike gold yet again with their wheeler-dealer approach, having signed Mowatt from Barnsley for nothing back in 2021, after he was also on the books at Elland Road.

The enthralling 5 foot 6 forward could also make competition fierce down the right wing in the West Midlands, pushing the likes of Tom Fellows and Jed Wallace all the way in unsettling the Baggies status quo, with Poveda then forming a terrifying partnership with Johnston down the line – if he is also signed – to scare Championship defences stiff next season.

How Poveda would fit into the West Brom side
Equally as keen as Johnston to terrorise defences with showboating and tricky skills down the flanks, both Poveda and the 25-year-old linking up next campaign could be a sight to behold for Baggies supporters, as another attempt at promotion comes into view.

Poveda will also look to the current Celtic man for some inspiration, having struggled to really show off his electric best from his youth days – which saw him bag six goals for former employers Manchester City at U23 level from 37 games – in the men’s game.

Yet, despite Johnston tearing the second-tier apart with seven goals and two assists during a breakneck 18 games, whilst the ex-Leeds man failed to find the back of the net for the Owls with just one assist mustered up, Poveda’s statistics compared to Johnston’s in their respective games, away from output alone, shows the free agent to be arguably a more dangerous player bombing forward.

The South American’s game could potentially even be elevated by playing side-by-side with the 25-year-old next campaign, alongside Corberan putting his arm around the exciting attacker, like he has done with a lot of the squad at his disposal who had previously been written off.

Stylishly gliding around the pitch last season with a 90% pass accuracy averaged per match, alongside notching up five assists, Mowatt has managed to become a key cog for Corberan, after once being let go of by the Tykes for nothing.
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