West Bromwich Albion's James Morrison Optimistic About New Signings
West Bromwich Albion boss James Morrison says he is “hopeful” of adding more faces before the transfer window shuts – with a deal for Manchester United midfielder Toby Collyer edging towards completion.
Albion are in advanced talks with United to bring Collyer back to The Hawthorns after his loan spell in the first half of last season, and are poised to agree a permanent move worth up to £7.6m. It would be a significant outlay and a clear show of faith in a player Morrison already knows well.
Tunde offers pace Albion have craved
While Collyer’s situation moves towards a conclusion, Morrison has been getting a closer look at new winger Kareem Tunde, who joined from Levante this week.
“It’s a big opportunity for him, coming to a new culture, still only being 21,” Morrison told BBC Radio WM. “He’s an exciting prospect and an exciting player, so we’re delighted to have him.
“It just gives us different options now and I felt like we’ve always missed that little bit in games where we could stretch our opposition and he’s got that pace and power that we’ve been looking for.”
Tunde becomes Albion’s eighth signing of the summer. Morrison, though, is not treating that as the end of the rebuild.
“I am hopeful,” he said of further business before the 1 September deadline. “There’s been a lot of hard work been going on behind the scenes. We have to do things a little bit differently, we have to be clever about it and I felt that we’ve been doing that because we’ve had a lot of signings.”
Strong start, stern test
Those signings are bedding into a squad that has hit the ground running. West Brom have taken maximum points from their first two Championship fixtures, setting an early standard Morrison is determined his players maintain.
Next up is a trip that means more to him than most: Middlesbrough away on Saturday. Last season’s beaten play-off finalists are his hometown club and the place where his career began.
“I’ve been back many times and played, so I’m over that,” he said. “I can remember my first one going back and I was all over the place, I was terrible. So I learnt from that experience.
“I think my last time there as a player, I ended up scoring and I still remember that feeling. So I’m really looking forward to the game, but also I know this is going to be one of the toughest away fixtures we’ll face.
“But they’ve [the Albion players] set a standard now and they can’t let it drop.”
The transfer work continues in the background. The real judgement will come on afternoons like the one waiting on Teesside.
