West Brom will pray they don't regret Millwall, Caleb Taylor transfer agreement | OneFootball

West Brom will be hoping they don't regret selling Caleb Taylor to Millwall.

West Brom will be praying that they don't regret their decision to allow defender Caleb Taylor to leave the club permanently for Millwall.

The towering centre-half completed a move to The Den on Friday, after the London-based club sold Japhet Tanganga to Championship rivals Sheffield United, leaving a hole in Alex Neil's defence, which has now been patched by Taylor.

Millwall have reportedly been long-term admirers of the 22-year-old, and have now brought him to East London in a deal said to be worth in the region of £2.5m.

Having been at the Hawthorns since the age of 10, Taylor hasn't been able to nail down a starting spot in the West Brom defence, despite multiple successful loan spells in League One with Cheltenham Town and Wycombe Wanderers respectively.

Coming off the back of a sensational loan stint with the Chairboys last season, cashing in on Taylor is a risky move by Ryan Mason's side, and they will be hopeful that this decision doesn't come back to bite them.

Caleb Taylor failed to break through at West Brom despite loan success

Soccer Football - FA Cup - Third Round - AFC Bournemouth v West Bromwich Albion - Vitality Stadium, Bournemouth, Britain - January 11, 2025 West Bromwich Albion's Caleb Taylor scores their first goal Action Images via Reuters/Peter Cziborra

Having risen through the Baggies' academy, Taylor was highly-rated by the Midlands-based outfit, which earned him his senior debut for his boyhood club in the 2021/22 season, but these would be just sporadic appearances.

In 2022, the then-teenager signed on loan with League One side Cheltenham, and quickly established himself as a key player for the Robins, playing 49 times in all competitions, as they ensured their third tier status was retained.

Taylor returned to The Hawthorns with the expectation that he would feature on a regular basis, but this wasn't the case, as he played just six senior games for West Brom before heading out on loan to Bolton Wanderers in the second-half of the season.

Unfortunately, his loan spell at the Toughsheet Community Stadium was cut short due to an ankle injury, setting the defender back to square one once again in his quest to get the nod for his parent club.

Having overcome the injury setback, Taylor was loaned to Wycombe in League One and would once again shine in the third tier, even being recalled by the Baggies mid-season, but he was ultimately sent back to Adams Park just weeks later.

It seemed that no matter how successful the 22-year-old was on loan, that breakthrough at West Brom just wouldn't come, and his 12-year stint at the club came to an end on Friday with just 12 senior appearances to his name.

West Brom will hope they don't regret allowing permanent Caleb Taylor exit

It's been a busy week in terms of defensive restructuring at The Hawthorns, with both Chris Mepham and Alfie Gilchirst joining the club, whilst academy graduate Taylor brought his time in the Midlands to a permanent end.

It's been a very tough few years for the 22-year-old, who has proven his ability in the third tier, but unfortunately he's never got the opportunity to prove he can do it in the Championship on a consistent basis.

Whilst signing Taylor does represent somewhat of a risk for Millwall, given his lack of experience in the second tier and rather sizable fee, it's certainly one worth taking, given his high ceiling and previous loan exploits.

The centre-back has all the minerals to become a top defender at Championship level, coupled with his young age and experience from multiple loan spells away, which have helped him land the move to East London.

The lack of minutes at West Brom isn't a reflection on Taylor's ability, more the other options at the club eating up the minutes, and not giving the youngster a real chance to get consistent game time for the Baggies.

With that in mind, West Brom will be praying that their treatment of Taylor over recent years won't come back to bite them, as they may well have let a gem slip through the cracks right under their nose.