According to latest reports, West Bromwich Albion manager Tony Pulis wants Bournemouth centre-half Steve Cook in the summer as the 59-year-old looks to beef up the backline. The Baggies manager has done a brilliant job of keeping the side in the top half of the table with the ageing legs of Jonas Olsson (33) and Gareth McAuley (37) at the heart of the defence, but it needs changing now.
Pulis is known for his tactics of slowing down the pace of the game and favouring a compact defence, thereby giving hardly any breathing space for the opponents. And the manager relies heavily on tall and strong enforcers for his plan to be implemented perfectly and Cook fits the bill quite well.
The 25-year old England international has been quite impressive under Eddie Howe and has reportedly managed to attract England manager Gareth Southgate’s attention, who is studying him closely. The Baggies have been keeping tabs on his development for some time now and are apparently plotting a summer bid of around £7million.
Bournemouth are definitely unwilling to sell one of their better players and if they manage to survive relegation at the end of the season, a move is all the more unlikely. After they had to let go off Chelsea loanee Nathan Ake quite abruptly in mid-season, Eddie Howe has experienced a severe shortage of centre-halves in the team; and the recent suspension of Tyrone Mings has made survival all the more difficult for the Cherries.
Cook has been their most regular player in the squad playing every minute of the Premier League this season. His consistency and discipline have led many to admire his potential at the back. As per reports, he tops the list for defenders making the most clearances in any of the top five leagues across Europe at an average of 9.7 per game.
His combination with Ake was so good that Howe has even considered buying the latter from Chelsea before next season. Bournemouth churned out a hard-fought draw against Manchester United last game where Cook was outstanding. He completed 15 clearances despite playing half the match with 10 men as midfielder Andrew Surman saw a red card early in the game.
A youth product of Brighton & Hove Albion, Cook had to spend loan stints with clubs like Havant & Waterlooville FC, Eastleigh FC, Eastbourne Borough, Mansfield Town and Bournemouth before finally making his move permanent with the Cherries in 2012 for £150,000 when they were still in League One.
Although Howe is quite inspirational as a manager to stick with, better wages might just lure Cook to take the next step.
