West Brom told Tom Fellows to Southampton is a "real disappointment" - Ipswich Town transfer point made | OneFootball

Tom Fellows is heading to Southampton from West Brom - our Baggies fan pundit has now had his say.

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

West Bromwich Albion are set to lose their prized asset, Tom Fellows, to divisional rivals Southampton with very little time in the summer transfer window remaining.

The Baggies academy graduate has been the subject of long-standing interest from Premier League sides after making a stellar breakthrough into Albion's first-team picture before asserting himself as one of the Championship's standout wide players.

However, it has been reported by Gregg Evans of the Athletic that the 22-year-old will move from the West Midlands to Hampshire for a fee of just £10m, which is set to leave a real sour taste in the mouth of those at The Hawthorns after the bright start the club has made in Ryan Mason's short tenure thus far.

Fellows' potential exit from the B71 club has been mooted for several months now, with Everton previously having the England Under-21 international on their radar prior to signing Tyler Dibling from Saints for £42m earlier this week.

Southampton were also credited with interest in the Solihull-born man last summer under Russell Martin, and such interest had resurfaced under Will Still at the beginning of the month, and they are now set to land a major coup for the highly-rated talent who posted four goals and was the division's joint-highest assist-maker last term with a tally of 14.

Unsurprisingly, Football League World's West Brom fan pundit, Callum Burgess, has been left bitterly frustrated by the fee, adding to the fact his services could significantly boost one of Albion's rivals in the promotion race.

"It's definitely a shock to see him go for so low," Burgess told FLW.

"After we sold Heggem, now Furlong this morning, it's a decent amount we've recouped from transfer fees this summer. To see Fellows go for just £10m is a real disappointment," he stated.

"I'm hoping that's a figure reported without add-ons and that there's a significant amount added on. But, if that's the flat-out fee we're going to receive for him then it's a real disappointment, especially with him being such a talented player - he got 14 assists last season.

"When you see some of the fees that have been spent on wingers such as Jack Clarke - he went for £15m + £5m last summer - Jaden Philogene went for more than £10m when he returned to Aston Villa, and they made a considerable profit on that when he joined Ipswich in January. I think we should've looked at those deals as a price-point to see how much we'd sell Fellows for.

"It's definitely a shame to see him go for that in the last few days of the window, where we're going to be desperately looking for a replacement now," Burgess added.

Whilst Southampton have been tipped by many to make an immediate return to the Premier League over the likes of Albion, who have still made a strong start to the campaign, it won't make this deal any easier for The Hawthorns faithful to stomach.

Fellows' current deal in the West Midlands runs until 2027, which will be another factor as to why many supporters will be left frustrated with such a low figure for his signature, especially if he stayed under Mason and continued to excel for the remaining 41 games.

It will also prove extremely difficult for Mason to source an adequate replacement, no matter how hopeful the club are of doing so, as rival clubs will also be involved in major transfer scrambles of their own for players of a similar ilk, which, in turn, only boosts the price of any potential incomings.