What’s happened to Torbjorn Heggem since he left West Brom for Bologna | OneFootball

FLW details how Torbjorn Heggem is getting on Italy after leaving The Hawthorns this summer.

West Brom supporters would have been bitterly disappointed to see Torbjorn Heggem depart The Hawthorns during the summer transfer window.

Due to ongoing financial issues that Shilen Patel has inherited from Guochuan Lai’s disastrous tenure, the Baggies have had to find a way of continuing to balance the books, with player sales crucial for this aim.

Due to this, Albion sanctioned Heggem a move to Italy, where he linked up with Bologna for a reported fee in the region of £10m.

It was an extraordinary profit for Albion to make inside just 12 months, after originally bringing him to England in the summer of 2024 from Swedish top-flight outfit Brommapojkarna for £500,000.

Under the regimes of Carlos Corberan, Tony Mowbray and interim boss James Morrison, Heggem played all but one game in that second-tier season, proving himself to be a valuable first-team asset and so influential to keeping the Albion backline resolute – particularly under Corberan.

After a stellar opening season in English football, it was no surprise to see bigger clubs being linked with securing his services, and this deal provided a much-needed boost to the coffers and helped the club have a busy end to the summer transfer window to aid Ryan Mason’s efforts at attempting to deliver promotion.

Despite having to move on from Heggem, he did turn himself into a fan favourite in the blue and white stripes, and some supporters will still be keen to learn how he is doing in his early days in Italy.

And Football League World can tell you, detailing how Heggem has performed so far while at Bologna.

Torbjorn Heggem’s start to life at Bologna

Torbjorn Heggem signed a contract with Bologna until 2029, looking to help them build on their impressive ninth-placed finish last term, which also included a Coppa Italia triumph and gained them access to the Europa League.

In their opening weekend clash against Roma, the 26-year-old was named on the substitutes bench but remained unused by manager Vincenzo Italiano.

He would eventually start the following weekend and make his home debut against Como, playing the full 90 minutes in a 1-0 victory – their first three points of the campaign.

From then, the Norwegian has gone on to start games against AC Milan, Genoa, Lecce, Pisa, Cagliari, Fiorentina, Parma and Napoli, while he was an unused substitute against Torino.

So far, Heggem has played a vital role in Bologna’s start to the Serie A season, with his new club tasting just one defeat from the nine games he’s played in so far, while they are currently on an eight-game unbeaten run that sees them occupy 5th in the table.

Meanwhile, the 26-year-old also got his first taste of Europa League action, featuring for 45 minutes in matchday three against FCSB in a 2-1 victory, before playing 90 minutes in a goalless draw with SK Brann.

From the opening stages of his stint in Italy, Heggem has won 34 duals, made 20 recoveries and has a passing accuracy of 91.9%, as per FotMob.

When it comes to social media, Heggem hasn’t been particularly busy on there covering his Bologna journey, with his Instagram page showing just two-related posts after broadcasting his West Brom exit message. His last Bologna post came five weeks ago after their 4-0 demolition victory over Pisa.

That can be seen as a positive for some supporters though, with the defender preferring to be focused on how he performs on the pitch.

Torbjorn Heggem starting off Bologna spell in successful fashion

While West Brom fans will still be disappointed that they had to part ways with such a talent in Torbjorn Heggem, there will be some joy taken in the fact that he is beginning to showcase his qualities at the very top of the Italian game.

He’s been trusted to play the majority of games for Bologna and contributed hugely to their positive start to the season.

Heggem will also have been delighted to finally secure some minutes in the Europa League after being on the bench for the first two matchdays, and he’s starting to feel the positive effects of making the leap to a top team that can help propel him to the next steps of his career.

He is already showing the defensive qualities that Baggies fans loved so much in his short stay at the club, and it’s no surprise to see him thriving in one of Europe’s top leagues after being one of the standout figures in the Championship last term.