The inside view on West Brom target Haris Seferovic

The Lisbon-based side need to raise funds after failing to qualify for the Champions League.

The Switzerland international has been in impressive form this season – netting seven goals in 11 league outings.

We spoke to Portuguese football expert Alex Goncalves to get the inside track on the Baggies target.

What kind of player is Seferovic?

Seferovic is a player who does well when playing in a front two, having someone – typically a more mobile forward – to play off and work with.

If you find the right partner for him, he can complement them very well and it can bring the best out of him. He is not particularly efficient in front of goal, at times quite wasteful which can frustrate fans.

But he does have excellent goalscoring spells too, and he is currently having a very good campaign.

He’s not the quickest footballer. But he is generally solid with the ball at his feet and offers some good physical attributes too.

He is able to hold the ball up effectively and get others involved in the game. But he is a player that can divide opinion.

What are his main strengths and weaknesses?

He's got a pretty solid all-round game. He offers a physical presence that can cause defences problems and he can back that up with good ability with the ball at his feet.

He has good vision to pick out a pass and link up with other players. He is not the quickest though.

A look over his past seasons will tell you that he can have excellent campaigns, and disappointing ones, so he is not the most consistent.

Is he the type of player to embrace a relegation battle?

It would be a real change to what he has experienced over the last few years – with Benfica a side that has dominated the ball most games and created a lot of chances.

To go from that to a side that will expect him to also put in a good shift defensively and step up and take his chances when they arrive more sporadically could be challenging.

But I think he would embrace the chance to test himself in England and would be committed to making his stint in the country a successful one.

Do you think Benfica would be willing to let him leave this month?

It will be difficult.

It is something Benfica likely would have been more willing to entertain in the summer after signing two new strikers.

But this campaign he has been in very good form and is one of the team's key players.

It will be a challenge for West Brom, particularly if they are hoping to strike a loan deal.

Do you think he would suit the Premier League?

He may not have played in England, but he’s got a lot of experience.

He’s earned over 60 caps for Switzerland and had spells in Germany and Spain before his stint in Portugal.

Additionally, he's represented Benfica in both the Champions League and Europa League – though he has not really impressed on either stage.

It is difficult to say with confidence how he would fare in England.

I don’t think he’s done quite enough in his career to give you complete confidence that he would be a success in England.

If he’s on top form he’s going to get goals, but if not, he can be frustrating.

Who does he compare to in English football?

You could say there are some similarities between him and Chris Wood at Burnley.

He's not very quick, but both are quite tall, offer something of an aerial threat and are also decent with the ball at their feet.

They also both show patches of form in front of goal but can go through dry spells as well.

Ultimately, I would say Wood is better in the air and Seferovic is better with his feet, but there are some similarities there.