According to latest reports in Turkish media, West Bromwich Albion have joined the race to sign Fenerbahce midfielder Ozan Tufan. The midfielder has made 31 appearances for Turkey and is praised heavily in his homeland. However, he failed to break into Fenerbahce’s lineup as he made just 14 appearances for them in the last campaign.
Tufan is already being linked with a move to Crystal Palace and Fulham. The Eagles even launched a bid for him according to some reports. The bid was said to be £2.5m and it is still not clear whether the Turkish outfit will entertain such an offer for their 23-year-old midfielder.
The Baggies will certainly be behind the pecking order as now they are a Championship club and a player is likely to prefer a move to top division club. However, they can lure him on the pretext that Darren Moore can offer him more chances in the first eleven.
West Brom finished rock bottom of the table last season and now they are preparing for life in the Championship. They have handed the club’s baton to Darren Moore who did exceedingly well in the latter half of the season but his real test will begin next season as the Baggies will be expected to fight for a playoff spot by the time the season comes to an end.
The 23-year-old is traditionally a defensive midfielder but can play in a more advanced role as well further up the pitch. He has even filled in at the right-back spot and his versatility can be termed as one of his biggest assets. He is still relatively young and therefore he can improve his game further but there will be a worrying sign for West Brom as he wasn’t able to break into the first team at Fenerbahce.
The Baggies side currently has Gareth Barry, Jake Livermore and Sam Field as only viable options to start in the middle of the park and signing a good defensive shield and a ball playing midfielder is of utmost priority for the West Midlands outfit.
Darren Moore will have his task cut out as he is fighting with two Premier League teams for the signature of the Turkish international. If there is a concrete offer made by any of the two other clubs involved then the Baggies will probably have to look at other alternatives to bring at the Hawthorns.
