Albion vault: Where is Ryan Donk now?

He was the Dutch defender who hopped on board at the Hawthorns when Tony Mowbray was boss for the Premier League season of 2008-09.

Arriving on loan from AZ Alkmaar in his homeland at the age of 22, he joined at the same time as Sweden stopper Jonas Olsson, who is still at the club, writes Craig Birch.

He joined with the reputation of being 'the new Jaap Stam' as Mowbray got his man, after a month's-long chase, and was knocking on the door of the full Holland squad.

Indeed, there would have been a permanent move in the pipeline for Donk, had he both performed and Albion remained in the top-flight as they were relegated.

Instead, he was restricted to just 16 appearances over the course of the season and had disappeared from the first-team picture long before the campaign had ended.

That was the last most Baggies fans heard of him, but Donk did get his move away from his homeland that summer and has continued his journey across Europe.

He spent a productive four years in Belgium with Club Brugge, making 130 appearances scoring 12 goals, despite still operating as a centre-back.

Kasimpasa then came calling in the close season of 2013 to take him to Turkey, for an undisclosed but substantial fee, as his stock rose again.

It was there where he transformed into a defensive midfielder as the club established themselves in the top-flight, with the lanky Donk their anchor in the middle of the park.

He became a You Tube sensation, too, when he was famously booked for throwing another ball onto the pitch to break up an opposition attack against Besitkas.

And, this week, he was on the move again as Turkish giants Galatasaray came calling to make him their first of the January transfer window for around £1.9million.

He penned a two-and-a-half year contract in a deal that miffed most of the club's fans. Why? Because the player would have been out of contract in the summer.

Donk will net £500,000 in wages until then with a £10,000-a-game bonus per start after his 12th time playing from the off - and it only gets better.

The full two seasons of his terms will net him £1.1m, plus that £10,000-a-game bonus which will kick in after his 25th start. There's every incentive for him to perform now.

So there you have it. The former Holland Under-21 international looks to be fulfilling his potential - and won't be short of a few bob if he shines for his new club.