£18m West Brom star set to leave the Hawthorns | OneFootball

The outgoing Baggies boss confirmed that Grady Diangana will be leaving the club in the summer.

Tony Mowbray has revealed that Grady Diangana will depart West Bromwich Albion during the summer transfer window.

The 61-year-old was sacked following the Baggies’ 3-1 home defeat to Derby County on Easter Monday, but revealed details on the potential futures of several players in what ultimately turned out to be his final press conference.

One of those was Diangana, whose contract is set to expire at the end of the season. The 27-year-old will leave The Hawthorns after six seasons with the club, having turned his initial loan move from West Ham United into a permanent one in the summer of 2020.

Mowbray suggested that Diangana is one of several senior players who are out of contract and therefore must be replaced ahead of next season.

Diangana may not be the only one to leave West Brom

With the announcement of Mowbray’s departure coming yesterday evening, it is unclear whether the former Sunderland and Blackburn boss had already learned his fate before this press conference.

While it is not entirely common to hear managers confirm the departure of one of their senior players well in advance, it does at least provide the fans with more clarity as to the situation that could be facing the Baggies over the summer.

Although Mowbray opted to namedrop Diangana specifically, there were also suggestions that he could be among several to depart the club.

Central defender Semi Ajayi is another whose deal is due to expire imminently, while Mowbray hinted that creative midfielder John Swift could follow Diangana out of the door.

Mowbray said: “I think he (Diangana) is a wonderful footballer, but he’s one who won’t be here next year. I just hope we get the recruitment right so we can have footballers who can take the place of a Diangana or a Swift and these footballers who want to play with the ball.”

While the duo’s situation could of course change now that Mowbray has been relieved of his duties, the outgoing boss confirmed that coaching teams at West Brom don’t take part in the recruitment process. Meaning that the decisions on Diangana and Swift will likely have been made irrespective of the club’s managerial future.

Diangana has been excellent for West Brom

Having clocked up almost 200 appearances for West Brom in total, Diangana has been a key player for the Baggies over the course of his time with the club.

They parted with £18m to secure his services in 2020 and he has become a reliable source of creativity for them over the years.

While the continued emergence of Tom Fellows has likely limited him to just 14 starts this season, Diangana has still provided a reasonable return, notching four goals and three assists so far.

His best season in a West Brom shirt came last time out, when he struck seven goals in the Championship and also added eight assists.

Despite confirming that he will depart the club in a matter of months, Mowbray was full of praise for the winger, telling Birmingham World: “I like footballers like Grady. I hear the stories that he was amazing when he first came, like, ‘Wow, what a footballer who helped this team and dragged it up by himself almost to get promotion’.

“I thought he was our best technical player today.”

After just one win in their last eight games, it now looks almost certain that the rebuild at The Hawthorns will come in the Championship rather than the Premier League. And, while every club undoubtedly wants to get to the top as quickly as possible, it may prove to be a blessing in disguise for the Baggies, considering the level that is needed throughout the squad just to compete in the top flight now.

After relinquishing their play-off spot in the last few weeks of the season, West Brom will be looking to go one better next term, but their ability to replace the likes of Diangana and Swift could have a huge say on how their season ultimately plays out.