John Swift setback should lead West Brom to ex-Brentford free agent: Opinion | OneFootball

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West Bromwich Albion's off-field problems are very much common knowledge by now, but through it all, head coach Carlos Corberan is continuing to battle on.

The Baggies' failure to get back to the Premier League within the last two seasons has seen their parachute payments disappear, and with an absent owner in Guochuan Lai not providing any funds, there was no real room to manouevre in the transfer window over the summer.

Just three new players arrived for Corberan, and not a single penny was spent on transfer fees as the Spaniard had to cut his cloth accordingly.

And whilst one first-team player in the form of Dara O'Shea was cashed in on for £7 million as the Irishman headed to Burnley, not enough funds were raised to make up the shortfall despite the fact that there was interest in players and bids were rejected for the likes of Jed Wallace and Brandon Thomas-Asante.

Overall, Corberan's squad is solid enough despite the lack of spending recently, but that is when everyone is fully-fit - and that is not the case right now.

What injury issues do West Brom currently have?

Daryl Dike has been out for a long time since rupturing his achilles in April, and he's not expected back until at least the end of 2023, and with Josh Maja also sidelined it has left Jed Wallace plying his trade as a lone striker, favoured ahead of Brandon Thomas-Asante.

Another attacking summer signing in the form of Brighton winger Jeremy Sarmiento hasn't featured a great amount so far, and Corberan is having to manage his fitness after several injuries in recent years.

The latest setback that has been handed to the Baggies head coach is the injury to John Swift, with a calf issue picked up against Birmingham City putting him on the shelf for six weeks.

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Swift is a key player for Albion and his absence for the next month or so means that Corberan needs to act if he can - and that means potentially dipping into the free agents market if there is money left in the budget.

West Brom have one spot available in their current squad for a senior player, and in Tariqe Fosu there is a player still looking for a club that could make a bit of a difference.

Why would Tariqe Fosu be a good signing for West Brom?

Fosu is a player who has racked up plenty of appearances at Championship level, most notably with Brentford.

Having starred briefly for Oxford United in League One, the Bees swooped for the winger's services in January 2020, adding him to their ranks ahead of their promotion push as they aimed to get to the Premier League.

Still in the Championship for the 2020-21 season though with the Londoners, Fosu played 49 times in all competitions for Brentford that year, scoring four times and also notching four assists.

Fosu fell out of favour though with Thomas Frank following their promotion to the top flight of English football, and last season he spent time on loan back in the second tier with both Stoke City and Rotherham United.

It was at the Millers where he had more success, playing in a variety of wide positions and also through the middle as he proved to be an effective, versatile asset for Matt Taylor.

For some reason, Fosu hasn't been picked up by another club since he became a free agent over the summer, but he could do a job for most Championship sides on his best day.

If he is fit and ready to go, then Fosu should be considered by West Brom and Corberan providing they have the necessary budget, as there are things that the 27-year-old can bring to the table that would be worthwhile whilst there are a shortage of options in the final third in the front three that the Baggies head coach likes to utilise.