West Brom back in the hunt for Arsenal left-back Kieran Gibbs as Watford pull out

The Baggies are now back in talks with the Gunners after walking away from a deal for the 27-year-old earlier this summer because Arsenal wanted £12million.

Arsenal have lowered their asking price since then, and had agreed a £7m fee for Gibbs with Watford.

But the Hornets have pulled out of that deal after failing to agree personal terms with the left-back, clearing the path for Albion.

The Baggies were interested in Gibbs earlier this summer, but walked away from talks because Arsenal wanted too much.

"There was a price and after that price there was no deal to be done," said Pulis at the time. "That's the bottom line. He was just too expensive."

Albion then turned their attention to versatile defender Kevin Wimmer, and the club struck up a £15m deal with Tottenham.

But Pulis didn’t green-light the signing and Wimmer wasn’t keen to play left-back when called upon and so that deal fell through. Wimmer has today completed an £18m move to Stoke City.

Pulis still wants to bolster his defence this window, and he’s been keen to sign a left-back all summer.

Earlier in the window, he pulled out of a deal for Charlie Taylor to focus on the spine, which was the priority at the time.

But the Baggies have since signed centre-back Ahmed Hegazi, and central midfielder Gareth Barry.

They are also closing in on a £10.6m deal for Josef de Souza after agreeing a fee with Fenerbahce, although the Brazilian midfielder still needs a work permit to play in England.

When Pulis was asked about the lack of left-backs in his squad, he said: “It's disappointing. But we're trying to rectify that before the deadline.”

Meanwhile, League Two leaders Exeter City have enquired about taking 17-year-old full-back Kane Wilson on loan.