Carlton Palmer praises West Brom for bullish stance around Southampton transfer pursuit | OneFootball

The Baggies kept hold of one of their top talents in the summer transfer window, despite Premier League advances

Former England international Carlton Palmer believes West Bromwich Albion have given their promotion prospects a massive boost by keeping hold of Tom Fellows.

The talented forward was said to be the subject of a £10 million bid from Southampton on the final day of the summer transfer window, although the Baggies stood firm and said he was not for sale.

With Albion said to rate their attacker in the region of £15 million, they successfully fended off interest from the Premier League outfit, while fellow top flight sides Everton and Ipswich Town were also ruled out the running.

With the transfer window successfully negotiated, Palmer believes Fellows could have a major part to play in the season ahead at the Hawthorns, as he continues to excel after breaking through into the first-team last season.

West Bromwich Albion fend off Southampton, Ipswich Town interest for Tom Fellows

After a spectacular breakthrough season in the Black Country, it was no surprise to see plenty of Premier League interest in Fellows this summer, with Saints reportedly being rebuffed with an eight-figure bid last month.

Despite starting just 14 league matches in the 23/24 campaign, the forward contributed towards seven goals for his side, as the Baggies missed out on promotion after being defeated in the Championship play-off semi-finals to Russell Martin’s side.

Ipswich will have seen first-hand how much quality the 21-year-old has at his disposal, after a mazy run and finish to open the scoring at Portman Road in February of this year, while Saints will have seen him twice in quick succession in the end of season lottery.

With that in mind, Palmer believes the fact that Albion managed to keep hold of a top talent, as well as securing the services of Mikey Johnston from Celtic, sets them up for a very promising season ahead.

The former Sheffield Wednesday man said: “It’s all good news for West Bromwich Albion at the moment after they managed to secure the deadline day deal for Mikey Johnston.

“Also, they made it very clear that Tom Fellows would not be leaving the football club unless they got a massive offer for him, after Southampton and Ipswich Town had made their interest known in trying to sign the player.

“He had his breakthrough into the first-team in the last 12 months, and he is an exciting player who is potentially going to have a fantastic future and is going to go up in valuation.

“Southampton reportedly bid an initial £10 million for the 21-year-old, which was rejected, with the stance being that he was a key part of Carlos Corberan’s team.

“At 21-years-old, he is going to have a fantastic future and is only going to go up in value.”

Early 24/25 signs are promising for Tom Fellows and West Bromwich Albion

As we head in to the first international break of the season, Albion are looking in fine form, with the Baggies yet to taste defeat in a league game after three wins and a single draw against Leeds United.

Fellows’ form has been fundamental to that bright start, having set up Josh Maja for the striker’s second in the opening 3-1 victory over Queens Park Rangers, before teeing up strikes for Maja and Karlan Grant in the 2-1 win against Stoke City.

With his pace and trickery proving too hot to handle on the flanks, Palmer believes the Baggies could be building something very special at the Hawthorns, with that transfer rejection likely to come up trumps in the years to come.

He continued: “He has already bagged three assists in the four opening games, and has struck up a dangerous partnership with Josh Maja, so it is brilliant news for West Bromwich Albion to keep hold of him.

“He is a very good player, and this is fantastic news for the football club, because you look at the squad that Carlos Corberan has put together, given the fact that they have struggles with money, and they have had to ship players out.

“They have had a fantastic start to the season, and they have given the fans some real hope for the season that they can go on and achieve something really good.”