Why West Brom really missed out on signing Southampton's Cameron Archer | OneFootball

The Baggies were keen on bringing Archer to The Hawthorns - but he headed for France instead

West Brom did not add to their striker options late on in the transfer window, but it wasn't for the want of trying, with Cameron Archer a live target that did not end up arriving at The Hawthorns.

The Baggies have had a hot start to the 2026-27 Championship season, and going into their Black County Derby clash with Wolves this weekend, they sit fourth in the second tier standings.

They perhaps face their toughest test yet though when heading to Molineux on Sunday to take on their bitterest of rivals, but they do so with a form striker on their hands in the form of Jimmy-Jay Morgan.

West Brom transfer truth emerges over Cameron Archer interest

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Morgan arrived at Albion from Chelsea in a £1.3 million deal over the summer, having impressed on loan at Peterborough United in League One in 2025-26, and he added to Aune Heggebø and Falkirk forward Barney Stewart as James Morrison's options.

Perhaps West Brom could've done with one more centre-forward addition though for added depth in case of injuries and suspensions - and Cameron Archer was a live target all summer.

The ex-Aston Villa man has struggled at Southampton since arriving there in 2024 for a fee of £15 million, scoring just six league goals in 65 appearances across the Premier League and Championship, and a fresh start was evidently needed in the most recent transfer window.

West Brom lurked for most of the summer, but as revealed now by The Telegraph's John Percy, they could not get a deal done for one simple reason - his wages.

Archer is on around £35,000-a week at Southampton, and they wanted all of that paying for the 24-year-old to depart on loan before the transfer deadline.

Albion though were not prepared to do that for a player who was not going to be a guaranteed started, so they snubbed a deal - in the end, Archer made the move to Auxerre of France, re-uniting with former Southampton manager Will Still, where he's already scored two goals in as many Ligue 1 games.

West Brom fans were seemingly happy to see Cameron Archer head elsewhere

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West Brom fans seemed to be in general agreement over not signing Archer when it came out that he was heading to France for the remainder of the season.

This supporter thinks that Archer would've been an expensive risk, and one worth avoiding given his recent Championship performances.

This supporter was happy for the club to line up another striker for a fraction of the wages - but in the end, that new striker didn't arrive before the September 1 deadline.

There was some concern though that Albion looked top-heavy in the middle of the park as opposed to up-front after not landing a centre-forward late on in the day, although it gives Morrison the option to go to more of a 4-5-1 formation rather than a 4-4-2 for away games.

Will West Brom regret not landing Cameron Archer after hot Auxerre start?

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With just Morgan, Heggebø and the unproven Stewart to pick from up-front, it's fair to say that West Brom do indeed look a tad light in that department - and Heggebø has already missed two matches through suspension.

There's more of a scope for a 4-5-1 or even a 4-2-3-1 when Tammer Bany is available, or Harry Whitwell could perhaps move into the 10 role in that formation, and a lone striker system definitely makes the situation look a lot better.

But Archer's start to life in France has been electric - two goals in two matches already shows that he's found his feet quickly, and even though statistically he's also missed three big chances, it shows he's getting the chances.