Exclusive: Burnley & Stoke City join West Brom in race to sign ex-Southampton player | OneFootball

Will Smallbone is a man in-demand, with the free agent midfielder now wanted by three Championship sides

West Brom are facing new challengers in their pursuit of an international midfielder, with Burnley and Stoke City now plotting their own swoops, Football League World can exclusively reveal.

Will Smallbone is now a free agent after his summer exit from Southampton, which has come after an 18-year stint at the south coast outfit - he played 90 times in all competitions for the Saints over a number of years.

The Baggies are on the hunt for a replacement for the experienced Alex Mowatt, who swapped The Hawthorns for Derby County last week after five long years at the Midlands outfit, and it's been reported that Smallbone is on the club's radar.

West Brom eye Will Smallbone on free transfer

That is on top of the recent arrivals of Felix Horn Myhre from Brann and fending off Swansea City to land Strasbourg midfielder Rabby Nzingoula, which was exclusively revealed by FLW.

With Ousmane Diakite and Jayson Molumby also midfield options for new permanent Albion manager James Morrison, as well as Harry Whitwell coming through the ranks and into the first-team, there's no major shortage of options in the engine room.

Yet, a successor for the departed Mowatt would be beneficial for West Brom, who now face competition for one of their targets.

Burnley & Stoke City set to rival West Brom for Will Smallbone

Now, FLW understands that both Burnley and Stoke City are interested in a deal for Republic of Ireland international midfielder Smallbone.

Stoke City of course know all about the 26-year-old, having spent time on loan at the bet365 Stadium during the 2022-23 season, where he appeared 46 times and scored three goals for the Potters.

Smallbone returned to the Saints after that and played a full season of Championship football, but after just 30 outings across the following two campaigns for Southampton and Millwall, the 15-cap international now finds himself a free agent and looking for a new club.

Stoke have also just sold Japanese midfielder Tatsuki Seko to Urawa Red Diamonds, leaving a potential vacancy in the engine room, albeit the signings of Svante Ingelsson, Ethan Galbraith and Djibril Soumare have already been made this summer.

Burnley are another club eyeing up a freebie swoop for Smallbone's services, having made a limited amount of additions to their first-team squad this summer.

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Josh Cullen remains absent from their midfield with a knee injury, and whilst Lille midfielder Ugo Raghouber was added to the likes of Hannibal, Josh Laurent and Aaron Ramsey in the middle of the park, a move for Smallbone could see some more depth added to Nicky Hayen's options.

Will Smallbone will surely find a Championship club in the coming weeks

Championship clubs had a slow start to the summer transfer window, with the FIFA World Cup's presence perhaps having a big knock-on effect when it came to getting deals done.

There is only two weeks left of the transfer window now though, although for players like Smallbone who aren't contracted to a club, their futures can be decided post-window.

Clubs will likely want their squads in place until January though when that deadline hits, and with a whole host of sides being keen on Smallbone's services, there's set to be a real battle to land a player who has both Premier League and plenty of Championship experience.