Over the years, West Brom have signed many players that have gone on to be huge successes at the football club.
In the last two decades, the Baggies have either been competing against some of the heavyweights in the Premier League or towards the top end of the Championship, with many of these captures going a long way in achieving this.
Albion also spent eight successive years in the Premier League between 2010 and 2018, with the recruitment team doing a thoroughly impressive job bringing players in that could compete at such a high level in the English game.
At Football League World we take a look at two masterstroke transfer decisions from Albion, with the combined transfer fee of the duo coming in at just £5.5 million.
Chris Brunt – £3 million
First up is Chris Brunt, who arrived at The Hawthorns for a reported fee of £3 million from Sheffield Wednesday, with the former Northern Ireland international cementing his legendary status in the Black Country with his quality and loyalty.
One of West Brom’s best ever bargain buys, Brunt would go on to spend an incredible 13 seasons with West Brom, amassing 421 appearances, recording 49 goals and 89 assists in all competitions.
In his opening season, Brunt went on to score the all-important equalising goal against Southampton to help the club clinch promotion to the Premier League in the 2007/08 season under Tony Mowbray.
With effortless quality generated with his left foot, Brunt conjured up some magical strikes in Albion’s eight-year stay in the Premier League, producing a sensational free-kick at Everton in 2010 as well as thumping in a left-footed effort in October 2011 against fierce Black Country rivals Wolves.
Brunt would also go on to become one of the top assist-makers in the top-flight, with his 49 assists putting him above the likes of Harry Kane, Sergio Agüero and Paolo Di Canio.
Brunt’s versatility also contributed to his longevity in the Albion XI under many different regimes, frequently occupying the left midfield role, but was also used regularly in a whole host of positions, including right midfield, central midfield and left-back.
For over a decade, Brunt helped Albion earn three promotions from the Championship, spent eight years in the Premier League and reached an FA Cup semi-final, with such accolades demonstrating his legendary status in the blue and white stripes.
| Chris Brunt’s West Bromwich Albion stats, as per Transfermarkt | ||
|---|---|---|
| Appearances | Goals | Assists |
| 421 | 49 | 89 |
Peter Odemwingie – £2.5 million
Meanwhile, Nigerian striker Peter Odemwingie arrived into the Premier League largely unknown to Europe, with the frontman linking up in B71 for a reported £2.5 million from Lokomotiv Moscow.
A game-changer when leading the line, Odemwingie immediately showed his prowess in front of goal, netting on his debut in an opening day victory over Sunderland in the 2010/11 season.
This would be a sign of things to come in an Albion shirt, as the marksman recorded 15 goals and nine assists from 32 top-flight outings, helping land West Brom to an 11th-placed finish.
In his second campaign, Odemwingie would be slightly less prolific but would go on to reach double figures yet again. Three of the ten goals in that term would come at Molineux, with an iconic hat-trick inflicting a 5-1 defeat on bitter Black Country rivals Wolves, sending Albion fans into delirium.
Despite his Albion career coming to a sour end in contrast to Brunt’s, Odemwingie offered such fantastic value for a minimal fee spent, with the forward creating wonderful memories in the Premier League and being such an effective number nine that Albion fans are crying out for in the present day.
West Brom will aim to replicate cheap gem deals moving forward
The arrivals of Chris Brunt and Peter Odemwingie were genius pieces of business that helped West Brom thrive over a long period of time and turned them into an established Premier League team.
Shilen Patel and Andrew Nestor will be keen on adding players with a similar ilk to this current Albion team in order to help get the Black Country outfit back to the heights of the top-flight, with shrewd transfer activity likely needed with the club competing against sides with superior financial pulling power to them.
If the Baggies could bring in players that could contribute as much as what Brunt and Odemwingie did over the years, then they would be heading in a positive direction and hold hope that they can be one of the leading teams in English football once again in the near future.
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