West Brom transfer update drops from Hawthorns | OneFootball

Following a narrow escape from relegation at the end of 2025-26, there's a lot of work for the Baggies to do to rebuild this summer.

West Bromwich Albion have a lot of squad rebuilding work to do this summer, and with two deals already sealed at The Hawthorns, there's more to come.

Few other EFL clubs ended the 2025-26 season with quite the sigh of relief that West Bromwich Albion did. A season which involved three managers and a points deduction for breaches of PSR guidelines meant that a season which started with hopes of pushing for a play-off place or higher ended with the club only avoiding relegation to League One as the result of a ten-game unbeaten run towards its end.

With Ryan Mason and Eric Ramsey having failed at The Hawthorns, it was former Albion star James Morrison who oversaw the team's recovery as interim head coach, a position which was made permanent once survival was confirmed at the end of the season.

And with Albion not wanting another season like the one they've been through, both Morrison and the West Bromwich Albion recruitment team have a busy summer ahead, with the prospect of a significant squad rebuild looming.

West Brom have secured the signing of Barney Stewart, but they're far from done in the transfer market

West Bromwich Albion have already confirmed their first new arrival of the summer, with the capture of the 22-year-old forward Barney Stewart from Falkirk for a reported fee of £1.3 million while Carter Pinnington has joined from Liverpool, and is set to initially link up with the club's under-21 squad.

But while the highly-rated Stewart is a good start, the Express & Star have confirmed that West Brom are far from done in the transfer market for this summer. They report that "Albion are pushing for more signings", with the arrival of Jimmy-Jay Morgan from Chelsea also expected.

They also report that the club aren't done with negotiations for players from last season who they wish to retain, either, stating that "Albion have been in talks with Karlan Grant over a new deal, while striker Josh Maja has been offered a new contract."

And as if all that isn't enough, they also report that James Morrison hasn't yet finished fine-tuning his backroom staff, stating that, "negotiations [are] taking place with Celtic over bringing Gavin Strachan to The Hawthorns."

Strachan, who's the son of the former Scotland international Gordon, has been on the Celtic coaching staff since 2020 and has previously been involved at several English clubs, including Peterborough United and Doncaster Rovers, where he served as the assistant to another son of a Scottish football legend, Darren Ferguson.

West Brom's early transfer window activity has been focused on youth

The two other fresh faces that could soon be joining Barney Stewart at The Hawthorns indicate that West Bromwich Albion's summer transfer policy is at least partly focused on bringing through new talent.

Carter Pinnington reportedly turned down a new contract with Liverpool in order to make the move to West Brom after twelve years with the Merseyside giants. Pinnington made 19 appearances for Liverpool's Premier League 2 side last year, but the club have been unable to tie him down to a new deal.

Another relative youngster who could be set for a move to the Black Country is Jimmy-Jay Morgan of Chelsea. The 20-year-old forward has been reported by the BBC to be "in advanced talks" with Albion following a successful loan spell with Peterborough United in 2025-26, during which he scored 12 goals and created three assists in 34 appearances, despite his team having a thoroughly underwhelming League One season which ended with them in 18th place in the table.

The contract negotiations with Karlan Grant and Josh Maja could be considered counterbalances to these arrivals. Grant and Maja are both highly experienced players, and it's important to hold onto these players when there are relative youngsters coming through. But after last season's narrow escape, there remains a lot of work to be done at West Bromwich Albion this summer, and there are no indications that the club is anywhere near finished in the trasnfer market yet.