“Surely has unfinished business” – Should West Brom capitalise on Stoke City interest? The verdict | OneFootball

This article is part of Football League World’s ‘The Verdict‘ series, which provides personal opinions from the FLW writers regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Stoke City have been linked with a move for West Bromwich Albion forward Karlan Grant.

That’s according to TEAMtalk, who report that Stoke have enquired about the availability of Grant and are keen to sign him on loan.

But would that be a good move for the Championship side? And should Albion cash in?

We quizzed our FLW writers…

Quiz: Are these 20 Stoke City facts real or fake?

1 of 20

Stoke City's nickname is the Potters?

True False

Ned Holmes

Unless they’re confident of signing a replacement, West Brom would be mad to let him go in my eyes.

He’s out of favour a little at the moment but his goal record at Championship level is evidence of what a useful player he can be.

Carlos Corberan does not have the forward depth to be loaning a player like Grant out to Stoke unless he has a replacement lined up.

That said, it could be a fantastic signing from Stoke’s perspective – particularly after Liam Delap was recalled and loaned out to Preston North End.

I can’t see this one happening.

This could actually be a very good signing for the Potters.

Scoring 18 league goals last season, he has already proven himself at this level and that’s something he has over former loanee Liam Delap.

He shouldn’t cost too much either if they only pursue a loan move, though it remains to be seen whether they can pay all of his wages.

The forward would certainly strengthen them and he could even secure a permanent move to the bet365 Stadium in the future, so this is a deal worth pursuing if they can get it over the line.

Albion may be reluctant to strengthen a league rival though, so it wouldn’t be a massive surprise if this deal doesn’t materialise.

He may not be the most popular figure at The Hawthorns – but at 25 – he surely has unfinished business with the Baggies despite the attacking options they have.

Proving himself to be a reliable goalscorer in the past, they should be charging a decent amount for him if they are to offload him permanently.

Justin Peach

Stoke are in need of a striker after Liam Delap’s loan was cut short but Karlan Grant might not be the profile they need.

Carlos Corberan has said in the past that his best position is out wide but he’s not creative enough to play there in this Stoke side and will need a Callum Robinson-type player to play alongside to get the best out of him.

The profile of Grant perhaps falls in between that of what Stoke currently need. He’s not a creative wide player, nor is he a physical forward which are the two areas that need to be looked at for the Potters.

Stoke unfortunately do not possess that type of player and should look to sign a target forward as opposed to a player of a similar profile to Jacob Brown and Tyrese Campbell.

Grant is a good forward that is low on confidence but isn’t what Stoke need at this current time which wouldn’t answer any of the current problems Alex Neil has.