West Brom stance should remain even after Middlesbrough transfer update: View | OneFootball

West Brom should still be looking to sell John Swift in this transfer window despite Middlesbrough not being interested in the player.

West Bromwich Albion’s preparations for the new 2024/25 Championship season are well underway.

The Baggies will be hoping the new season can bring success to the Hawthorns after missing out on promotion last season.

Carlos Corberan’s side were very consistent throughout the campaign but fell short in the play-offs when they were beaten by eventual winners Southampton.

Corberan managed to guide the Midlands side to a top-six finish despite the fact that they were unable to do much business in both transfer windows.

The Spaniard will hope that can now change given the change in ownership, and while the focus will be on what players they would like to join the club, there may be one or two players already at West Brom who could be on their way out.

It did appear as though John Swift could be a man heading to the exit door early this week, but that may have now changed given the recent update about Middlesbrough’s interest.

Middlesbrough not planning John Swift approach

It was reported by Football Insider earlier this week that Middlesbrough were plotting a raid on West Brom for midfielder John Swift.

The report stated that Boro are admirers of the 29-year-old and have registered their interest in a move for him. It was also stated that the Baggies are open to offers for the midfielder as he enters the final 12 months of his contract, and a sale would help raise funds.

However, it has since been reported by The Northern Echo that Middlesbrough did discuss Swift in a recruitment meeting at the end of last season, but as things stand, there are no plans to pursue a move.

The report goes on to say that Boro did discuss the merits of signing Swift, but they have moved on, with the possibility of reassessing the situation not ruled completely out before the close of the transfer window.

Despite Middlesbrough not being interested in a move for Swift, West Brom should keep the stance of looking to sell the midfielder this summer.

At the time, it didn’t come as much of a surprise to see Middlesbrough being linked with a move for John Swift, as he seemed to be the perfect type of midfielder to play for Michael Carrick.

The 29-year-old is very good on the ball, dangerous going forward, and has been a very good servant in the Championship in recent years.

Boro’s interest has now been ruled out, and even though there are no serious clubs pursuing Swift at this moment in time, West Brom should keep the exit door open.

While Swift is still a very good player, the midfielder hasn’t quite hit the heights at the Hawthorns that he did while playing for Reading FC.

Last season, Swift started just 20 of the 37 games he was available for in the Championship, averaging 50 minutes per game.

The midfielder did still impress in front of goal. He scored nine times, but apart from that, Swift didn’t have much impact on the West Brom team.

Swift has been well known for his creativity, but last season he grabbed just one assist and created just two big chances, as per Sofascore.com.

When you look at these metrics compared to the rest of the West Brom squad, it is surprising to see how Swift wasn’t among the club’s most creative threats. The midfielder was ranked 10th for the most assists in the squad, which you wouldn’t expect from a player of his quality.

This is a big contrast to the 2021/22 season, where yes, Swift was younger, but he was so important for Reading.

The midfielder started 36 of the 38 games he played, averaging 86 minutes on the pitch. Swift scored two more goals in that season than he did for West Brom in the 2023/24 campaign.

But he was so much better in his creativity, as Swift created 10 big chances and collected 2.7 key passes, which helped him record a staggering 13 assists.

Obviously, Swift is a few years older than he was when he played for Reading, and it could be argued that the Championship has got tougher since then. Ultimately, though, Swift hasn’t been as impressive for West Brom as they had hoped.

With the player now in the final 12 months of his contract and, at the age of 29, West Brom may be best cutting their losses and looking to move him on in this transfer window; fishing for more interest if Boro don't come to the table with any bid.

The Baggies are unlikely to get a lot for Swift, given his age and contract situation, but they can get enough where it can help them improve their squad in other areas, giving the new ownership a slightly sweeter budget to arm Corberan with.