Exclusive: West Brom & Swansea City in transfer battle for Strasbourg midfielder | OneFootball

French youth international Rabby Nzingoula is being eyed by both West Brom and Swansea as a new engine room option

West Brom and Swansea City are set to go to battle for a new midfielder option from the French top flight, Football League World can exclusively reveal.

There is just three weeks remaining of the summer transfer window for EFL clubs to get their business done until they are limited to free agent deals until January 2027, and clubs may know more after their first league match of the season this coming weekend as to what gaps are needed to be filled.

And with the rules for overseas transfers changing earlier this summer, with ESC slots only able to be used on players aged 23 and under as opposed to there not being an age limit prior to that, the talent pool which is eligible to be signed has shrunk, meaning Championship clubs are looking at the same targets.

Strasbourg midfielder Rabby Nzingoula eyed by Championship pair

Action Images

It appears that both West Brom and Swansea are looking into the same midfielder target, with Strasbourg youngster Rabby Nzingoula being eyed up by the second tier pair for a late summer transfer.

The 20-year-old joined the top flight French side - who are owned by Chelsea's owners BlueCo - in 2022, initially heading for their B-team after signing from Orléans, before making his first-team debut in February 2024.

The 10-cap France under-20 international has played 15 times for Strasbourg's senior side, with a full season in 2024-25 spent at Montpellier in Ligue 1, before spending the second half of the most recent campaign on loan in Germany's second tier with Nurnberg.

Nurnberg had a €4 million option to buy, which they chose not to take up for the defensive midfielder, and now he has emerged as an option for British clubs, with just one year remaining on his contract at Stade de la Meinau.

West Brom may need some more midfield steel for James Morrison era

Action Images

With James Morrison being handed the West Brom job on a permanent basis following a stint as caretaker boss, the Baggies hierarchy have backed him with some ambitious signings in the summer, including Chelsea forward Jimmy-Jay Morgan and Norwegian midfielder Felix Horn Myhre.

The depth of their squad though is relatively small still, and when it comes to midfielders, the aforementioned Myhre has recently arrived, but some more defensive prowess in the pivot, with Morrison likely going to play a 4-4-2 formation, would be desirable.

Ousmane Diakite and Jayson Molumby can somewhat provide it, but Nzingoula is an out-and-out defensive midfielder, who could be a worthwhile investment with just one year left on his contract in France.

Swansea City may see Nzingoula as Fall Seck alternative

Similarly, Swansea City are evidently on the hunt for a new midfield option, having been in the mix for Randers' Senegalese teenager Ousseynou Fall Seck recently.

There is interest elsewhere in the 19-year-old though, and Nzingoula is perhaps seen as an alternative option to what Seck could bring to Vitor Matos' side.

Matos has just Marko Stamenic and the experienced Jay Fulton to call upon when it comes to defensive-minded engine room options, which is why another player in that area is being pursued, especially after Ethan Galbraith's move to Stoke City earlier in the window, but if they want Nzingoula, then they will have to fend off a Championship rival.