Is West Brom's Okay Yoksulu the best in the Championship?

However, if he had gone it would have been to a bigger club. If it would have happened, from an Albion perspective you'd be devastated, but on the other hand it would have been easy to understand why.

When the Turk came in back in the summer of 2022 following that brief but impressive loan spell in the Premier League, it was a coup for Albion, make no mistake about it.

In the months before, he had been playing in La Liga and playing pretty well so to attract him here was a big move.

Those opening months of his time at the club didn't really go to plan, individually or collectively.

Yokulsu looking sluggish and off the pace, as did Albion with Steve Bruce eventually sacked before being replaced by Carlos Corberan.

His form did recover and he went on to have an impressive remainder of the campaign.

Now this season, and certainly in recent months, he is hitting the levels that all Albion fans know he can hit, and have seen him hit before.

On current form, Yokuslu is showing it all.

It isn't often you see a midfielder so strong in the tackle and good at his defensive protection job in front of the back four, who is also as delicate on the ball as the big Turk.

How often do we see him thunder into tackles in front of the back four, protect it from more than one player, then off load it with a simple pass or a raking cross field ball?

The answer is a lot.

And the reason Albion fans speak in such glowing terms about him, and why he was linked with a January switch, is because that is only a small part of his game.

The phrase 'box to box midfielder' isn't used as often as it used to be. It has been replaced with all the modern day speak we here today.

But there are midfielders of that ilk, and at times this season Yokuslu has strayed into that category.

On more than one occasion at Portman Road on Saturday, Yokuslu not only started moves but he was there on the edge of the opposition box when Albion were looking dangerous.

His energy and the way he gets around the park is a massive part of what Albion do both defensively and offensively, and the way he is playing at the moment, it is still difficult to see how Albion were able to get him back.

It has been made common knowledge that is love of his time at the club on loan and how much he enjoys living in the area was a big factor.

But away from that, it is surprising the Turk hasn't been subject to more interest, because what Albion have is a Premier League player in the Championship.

In the summer there was interest in other Albion players, but not Yokuslu and that is a head scratcher.

The sides at the top of the division, who came down from the Premier League have real quality. But there is an argument to say Yokuslu is the best in his position in the division.

Does he get into the top sides? Yes. For me, he even gets into those sides in the bottom half of the Premier League, on his day he is that good.

Albion and Corberan are lucky to have him, and the Baggies manager will know that.

And I'd be very surprised if there isn't interest in the Turk come the summer, if his form continues the way it is.

The off field situation will predict what Albion will do with the midfielder if offers do come in - but one thing is for sure, he'd be very, very difficult to replace.