Albion are back on John Carew alert

Albion were back on 'Carew alert' today as leading scorer Peter Odemwingie claimed he would welcome extra competition for his place.

Villa's prospective signing of Darren Bent left the Baggies hoping their on-off loan deal for John Carew can be resurrected in the days ahead.

And Nigeria international Odemwingie, who has hit eight goals in 16 Albion starts, insisted he would be happy to see a new rival for his place.

With Bent expected to sign for Villa from Sunderland and Emile Heskey just one match away from completing his three-match suspension, Albion will hope Carew becomes available again.

The clubs had agreed a loan move for the 31-year-old out-of-favour striker but Heskey's red card against Sunderland put the deal on ice.

Carew remains at the top of the January hit-list for Albion, who are keen to add extra firepower with Odemwingie proving prolific but prone to injury.

He said: "You cannot avoid this competition. Every team has competition between players. It's something that must be there and we have it already.

"If someone else comes in and he's good then maybe I will need to do extra that I've never done before to get a shirt.

"I know that."

Albion will hope the groundwork they did last month can give them the edge in signing Carew, but reports from London suggest they could face competition if Villa decide the player is back on the market.

West Ham are thought to be keen if they confirm former Villa boss Martin O'Neill as their new manager, while big-spending Championship club QPR have also been linked.

Albion have alternative targets, but reports claiming they will go head-to-head with West Ham for Peguy Luyindula are exaggerated.

The 31-year-old Frenchman, currently with Paris Saint-Germain, has been on the Baggies' watchlist for several years and was linked strongly with a move to the Hawthorns in previous transfer window.

But Luyindula is not believed to be high on their current shortlist.