Expected West Brom deadline day transfer business

It has been a reasonably busy period at The Hawthorns and certainly one that gained traction in the final weeks of the window as Albion additions and exits accelerated.

The club will kickstart their deadline day business with the loan signing of Villa winger Samuel Iling-Junior.

The 21-year-old left-sided player was exclusively revealed to be Hawthorns-bound by the Express & Star on Sunday and had his medical at the club's training ground on Monday morning.

Iling-Junior, who cost Villa £14million from Juventus where he made almost 50 senior appearances, is seen by the club as predominantly a winger who can also offer cover and competition in a deeper left-back or wing-back role if required, with Callum Styles the only natural player in this role.

It is understood Albion's only other incoming transfer business by the evening's deadline will be at left-back.

The club have options in that position and it is not yet clear whether the new arrival will be a loan or a permanent option. Frozen out left-back Gianluca Frabotta was given a free transfer last month. Summer recruit George Campbell, primarily a centre-back, has already shown his versatile qualities at full-back.

The Baggies are not in the market for another attacker, after Iling-Junior, as a direct or indirect replacement for right winger Tom Fellows, who departed in a £10million move for Southampton last week.

Albion are confident in their business not just this off-season, but also stretching back to January, in building a squad that has at least two options in each position.

Fellows' exit may leave skipper Jed Wallace as the only out-and-out natural right winger, but Albion are confident Mikey Johnston can be used on that flank, too, as a more inverted and fluid option.

Iling-Junior, while left-footed, can also operate on the right side. He was playing that role when he netted for Bologna against Dortmund in the Champions League last season and his only Serie A goal for the loan outfit also came from that side, a last-minute equaliser.

The same could be said for star man Isaac Price, who is shining in a number 10 role but is capable of drifting to either wing.

Business stretching back to January, when Price and Tammer Bany arrived for £2.5m and £3.3m respectively, was done in preparation for a likely Fellows departure and Iling-Junior has been added as another wide option.

The Baggies feel with Karlan Grant, Johnston, Price, Bany, Wallace and Iling-Junior they are stocked in the wide and attacking midfield roles. Striker Josh Maja is also capable of dropping deeper. Versatility has been a key point of Bilkul's recruitment.

Albion have raised good funds this summer with the sales of Fellows, Torbjorn Heggem (£9m), Darnell Furlong (£4m) and Caleb Taylor (£2.5m) and significantly strengthened the club's financial footing from a profit and sustainability (PSR) perspective.

Chairman Shilen Patel has stated at every juncture that the club will be inventive while rebuilding within their means. Fees have been spent on eight players since January and there is a firm belief within The Hawthorns powers that be that the squad is in a strong position and has been assembled with respectable fees for a mix of young players and leaders with more experience. 

Chris Mepham, who could win his 50th Wales cap this week, and highly-regarded Chelsea prospect Alfie Gilchrist for fees of around £1m are testament to that.

But that does not mean Albion have been penny pinching while living within their means on the recovery from the financial disaster led by the previous ownership.

Striker Aune Heggebo, who has caught the eye so far, was not cheap at just shy of £5m and the bigger fees spent on Price and Bany earlier this year were considered as part of the long-term planning and squad building process.