West Bromwich Albion will release Romaine Sawyers once his contract expires in July, according to a report from the Express & Star.
The lowdown: Surplus to requirements
Having previously been a mainstay under Slaven Bilic, the midfielder – who was a product of the Baggies’ youth system before undergoing multiple transfers – saw a dramatic reduction in game-time in the latter half of last season with Sam Allardyce in The Hawthorns hot seat.
The 30-year-old spent the 2021/22 campaign on loan at Stoke, where he directly contributed to seven goals in 29 outings.
Instead of returning to Albion, though, it appears that the St Kitts & Nevis international will be free to seek pastures new and find a home elsewhere…
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The latest: West Brom won’t keep Sawyers
As per the Express & Star, West Brom manager Steve Bruce has chosen not to extend Sawyers’ stay with the Baggies.
It’s claimed that there was an option to add a further 12 months to the 30-cap midfielder’s contract, but the club have decided against triggering the clause.
The report added that The Hawthorns hierarchy would ‘rather spend the money needed’ in order to keep Sawyers at the club on adding fresh faces to the squad, with Reading’s John Swift cited as a potential target.
The verdict: Bruce missing a trick
While the Baggies academy graduate has failed to pull up any trees since returning to The Hawthorns in 2019, scoring just once and providing one assist in 64 appearances, Sawyers still remains an impressive Championship operator and therefore would’ve been of use to Bruce’s ranks without the requirement of a transfer fee.
During the recently completed season, the 30-year-old – who was once hailed as an ‘unbelievable technician’ by former West Brom academy coach Jimmy Shan – earned a 6.72 Sofascore rating whilst completing 32.1 accurate passes and 0.4 successful dribbles and winning 2.3 duels per game, having made 19 Championship starts.
Sawyers may no longer be a surefire starter at a Championship club with aspirations of promotion, but Bruce may yet live to regret not retaining his services for at least another 12 months.
In other news: Sawyers isn’t the only player who looks like he’ll be exiting West Brom this summer
