West Bromwich Albion fans will be overjoyed with the way their side has started this new Championship season, with the Baggies boasting the tag of being only one of the two remaining unbeaten teams still standing in the second tier alongside Regis Le Bris’ Sunderland.
It’s not been the most exciting brand of football from Carlos Corberan‘s men with just six goals scored across this unbeaten four-game stretch, but it’s West Brom’s defence that continues to shine with only two goals given up.
The likes of Kyle Bartley and Darnell Furlong as first-team stalwarts under the Spaniard ensure the Baggies remain rock solid defensively, with both experienced defenders not too dissimilar in approach to Jonny Evans, who was once a seasoned titan at the back for the West Midlands outfit himself.
Jonny Evans’ time at West Brom
Still standing strong at 36 years of age now playing for Manchester United, Evans is fondly remembered at the Hawthorns for being a dependable performer for the Baggies during their recent top-flight hey-day.
The Northern Irish centre-back would amass 96 games in total for West Brom, with all of those appearances coming in the Premier League, before he ended up jumping ship to Leicester City after his ex-employers were relegated at the end of the 17/18 campaign.
There won’t be any hard feelings towards Evans from West Brom supporters in the here and now, however, as their former number six never downed his tools, even during that bleak relegation season.
Evans would help himself to two goals and an assist during his 28 top-flight games that campaign, with a fight still present in his game despite relegation becoming more and more of a growing possibility, as an impressive 4.3 total duels were won on average per clash.
His top performances for the Baggies at the time even saw the likes of Arsenal reportedly show interest in his services, before the Foxes snapped him up in 2018.
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How much Jonny Evans’ transfer would be worth in 2024
If the same golden deal was to take place today for Evans to join West Brom, the 6 foot 2 Premier League veteran would cost way more to get into the building than the prices of both Furlong and Alex Mowatt in the current Baggies first-team squad. That’s according to TotallyMoney’s Transfer Index.
Evans would end up costing the Baggies a high £12.1m if the same transfer were to take place in today’s inflated transfer landscape, with the current Red Devil coming in as the most expensive player in the West Brom squad subsequently, when looking at Football Transfers.
Both Furlong and Mowatt are worth just £2.3m and £3.3m for Corberan’s promotion chasers, on the other hand, despite both already showing that they’re crucial parts of the jigsaw at the Hawthorns this season in league action.
|
Furlong + Mowatt’s numbers vs Swansea |
||
|---|---|---|
|
Stat |
Furlong |
Mowatt |
|
Minutes played |
90 |
90 |
|
Goals scored |
0 |
0 |
|
Assists |
0 |
0 |
|
Touches |
62 |
54 |
|
Accurate passes |
31/34 (91%) |
36/45 (80%) |
|
Key passes |
2 |
1 |
|
Total duels won |
7/10 |
2/2 |
|
Stats by Sofascore |
||
Both players helped West Brom pick up a 1-0 win versus Swansea City last time out before the international break came into full force, with Furlong in particular standing out with two key passes registered and seven duels won.
Corberan has even singled out Furlong for praise recently, with the Spaniard stating that he loves working with the Baggies defender, who is now on to 205 total appearances in an Albion strip.
Both the Baggies number two and Mowatt will strive to get West Brom back to the level where Evans still shines – having been labelled as a “wall” defensively by football talent scout Jacek Kulig when starring for Leicester – as the games come thick and fast after the lengthy international break is over.