Football League World
·14 October 2024
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·14 October 2024
FLW's West Bromwich Albion fan pundit believes the Leicester City striker would make a great addition.
This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more...
Tom Cannon was hot property during the summer transfer window, with a host of Championship clubs linked with the Leicester City striker.
It was Stoke City who landed the Republic of Ireland international on a season-long loan. The forward made headlines recently by scoring four goals in the Potters' dismantling of Portsmouth at the Bet365 Stadium.
Although Stoke will want to cling on to Cannon for the remainder of the season, Leicester possess a recall clause in the loan agreement, as reported by Alan Nixon.
The reported clause means that Leicester could look to cash-in on Cannon in January, with West Bromwich Albion one of the clubs credited with interest.
Given the Baggies' formidable start to the Championship campaign, the Hawthorns would represent an appealing destination for Cannon. West Brom currently sit in fourth place with 17 points, just two off league leaders, Sunderland.
Josh Maja is currently the joint leading scorer in the league with seven goals, along with Borja Sainz of Norwich City.
FLW's West Brom fan pundit, Callum Burgess, believes the signing of Cannon would complement the prolific Maja.
"After his start to the season, you can't imagine someone coming in to displace him anytime soon," Burgess told Football League World.
"If it's to play in a front two alongside Josh Maja, I think that's a really exciting proposition, where I think the two would compliment each other really nicely, especially with Maja showing his ability this season, his ability to drop deep and link up play.
"He'd benefit from having the presence of the fox in the box, Tom Cannon, waiting to sniff out any chances.
"I'm sure while Maja’s been thriving playing alongside Tom Fellows on the wing, Cannon would be someone who'd really enjoy playing with the creativity on the wing, with the amount of assists that Fellows would get from playing with Maja and Cannon being a really exciting prospect as well."
Having not scored in his opening three games of the season for Stoke, Cannon made up for lost time with four goals against winless Portsmouth.
His clinical performance caught the eyes of many, with West Brom and Sheffield United reportedly interested in his services in January, as per Alan Nixon.
FLW's fan pundit went on to describe how impressed he has been with the 21-year-old. "Cannon was probably the striker that I was most keen for Albion to push for in the summer," continued Burgess.
"With his performance against Portsmouth, he showed that ruthless side to him where he can be a clinical striker, and that's as much as you can ask for in this league."
A stumbling block for many sides, including West Brom, would be the potential transfer fee that Leicester would ask for Cannon.
During the summer window, the striker was reportedly valued at £7m, as per The Sun, which put off several suitors, including the likes of Sunderland. The 21-year-old eventually left on loan seemingly because no clubs were willing to meet his price tag.
Burgess does not believe that the Baggies would be able to afford Cannon. "I'm unsure if Albion would have the funds to buy Cannon outright," he continued.
"Unless we can agree a loan deal, which would see him spend the second half of the season at Albion, I don't think it will be happening. Furthermore, we will have Daryl Dike coming back.
"Having the ability to slowly, gradually build Dike back into the team, while having Cannon and Maja as well as other forward options, would be really exciting."
Cannon has caught the attention of Championship clubs, following his four-goal performance for Stoke against Portsmouth.
While Leicester possess a recall clause in his contract, West Brom will be closely eyeing his situation come January.