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This article is part of Football FanCast’s In Numbers series, which takes a statistical look at performances, season-long form and reported transfer targets…
West Brom’s transfer window started in one of the worst ways possible.
After confirming that Dwight Gayle wouldn’t return, they saw Craig Dawson and Jay Rodriguez both walk out of the Hawthorns too.
As if that wasn’t enough, two of their brightest academy prospects in Louie Barry and Morgan Rogers also departed for pastures new.
However, Slaven Bilic has helped Albion to bounce back in the transfer market, adding three new faces to his squad in recent weeks.
Following the loan signing of Filip Krovinovic, there were permanent arrivals in the form of Kenneth Zohore, Semi Ajayi and Darnell Furlong.
One of their latest recruits, however, could be Romaine Sawyers.
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The Brentford man started his career with the Baggies but could be about to re-sign after West Brom agreed a fee with the Bees for £3m.
The midfielder is a fine passer of the ball and should add plenty of quality in the middle of the park.
Last season he claimed six assists whilst finishing the term with a pass success of 86.2%.
However, it’s in the long ball department where he particularly stands out.
In 2018/19, he was accurate with 3.9 per game, a high total if you consider the numbers those in the West Brom team averaged.
Excluding defenders, Gareth Barry was top of the charts, completing 3.5 long balls per game whilst Chris Brunt was next with three.
Given Barry has now departed, Sawyers should more than make up for his absence in all phases of play.
Last season, the 27-year-old completed as many as 13 long balls in one game and it’s this trait that he possesses which could be extremely beneficial for Zohore.
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The forward is particularly strong in the air, winning 2.2 aerial duels in the Premier League whilst winning 3.3 and 4.8 duels in the air over the last two seasons he’s played in the Championship.
Therefore, Bilic could use Sawyers’ ability to play the ball long to Zohore’s advantage, lofting it in the air for the Dane to bring down and move onto a teammate.
Earlier in the summer, Albion’s manager declared that he wanted to play with two strikers and these two could play into that if Zohore is able to latch onto long balls and flick it on for another forward.
Signing Sawyers, therefore, could be perfect for Bilic’s system.
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