West Brom in transfer tug of war with Leicester City for Aston Villa player | OneFootball

West Brom are leading the race for Jamaldeen Jimoh-Aloba's signature this month

West Brom are leading the race to sign Aston Villa midfielder Jamaldeen Jimoh-Aloba this month, after the youngster netted the winner in the Villains' 3-2 victory over RB Salzburg in the Europa League on Thursday evening.

As reported by The Athletic's Jacob Tanswell, West Brom have emerged as favourites to sign 19-year-old Jimoh-Aloba on loan before the winter deadline.

An attacking midfielder by trade, Jimoh-Aloba grabbed the headlines in Aston Villa's Thursday night victory over Austrian side RB Salzburg, confirming the Villains' place in the Round of 16 in the Europa League.

The youngster benefitted from Villa's current injury woes that have ravaged the Premier League high-flyers' squad by earning a place on the bench in their victory over Salzburg, coming on as a 66th minute substitue for Emiliano Buendia before netting the winner in the 87th minute.

In what was his first taste of European football in his career, one kick of the ball has catapulted Jimoh-Aloba into stardom, and now looks set to earn a loan move to the Championship for the remainder of the season to continue his development, with West Brom leading the race.

As confirmed by The Athletic's Jacob Tanswell, Jimoh-Aloba looks primed to join West Brom on loan for the remainder of the season, just hours after netting Villa's winning goal in Europe.

The England youth international spent a huge portion of his youth career in the academy of the Baggies, which he joined at the age of six before making the move across Birmingham to Villa Park in August 2023.

However, a deal is not completed just yet, with other clubs in the second tier interested in taking the European hero on loan for the rest of the season.

This includes Leicester City, whose financial restrictions have drastically limited who they have been able to sign both over the summer and this month, and are eyeing up Jimoh-Aloba to bolster their midfield options.

For now, though, it appears that Jimoh-Aloba is more than likely to rejoin his boyhood club for the second half of the campaign to continue his development and in a bid to earn more playing time, but no decision has been finalised at Villa Park.

With West Brom's woes towards the bottom of the Championship table, they will be hoping to beat Leicester to their former youth prospect's signature soon, in the hopes that he can provide some much-needed quality in the final third.

Eric Ramsay will hope the addition of Jamaldeen Jimoh-Aloba can help elevate West Brom's precarious league position

Indeed, West Brom find themselves hovering just above the relegation zone as things stand, with just two wins in their last 11 games and possessing one of the worst away records in the division, above only Sheffield Wednesday.

The Baggies have the likes of Mikey Johnston, Isaac Price, and Aune Heggebo in attack, Jayson Molumby and Alex Mowatt in midfield, whilst George Campbell, Nat Phillips, and Chris Mepham are in the back line.

The general consensus remains that their squad, on paper, is too good to be in the position it currently finds itself in, and certainly too good to go down.

Goalkeeper Max O'Leary remains the only addition this month, signing from Bristol City, though the imminent capture of Jimoh-Aloba will almost certainly add a degree of excitement to their front line.

Head coach Eric Ramsay will be hoping that Jimoh-Aloba can add the spark that the Baggies desperately need in attack upon his arrival, with the Baggies in real danger of slipping into a relegation battle if their form doesn't improve sooner rather than later.