Sporting Director Andrew Nestor has provided his assessment of the winter transfer window after Albion signed four players to strengthen the squad for the remainder of the season and beyond.
The Baggies completed the loan signings of strikers Adam Armstrong and Will Lankshear, having already sealed the permanent transfers of midfielders Isaac Price and Tammer Bany for undisclosed fees.
Goalkeeper Alex Palmer joined Ipswich Town on deadline day and 23-year-old stopper Josh Griffiths returned from a loan spell at Bristol Rovers, while Lewis Dobbin and Uros Racic were recalled by their parent clubs.
Nestor believes Albion have completed their goal of ending the window in a stronger position than they entered January. Here’s what he had to say on…
The window overall:
"The aim of any transfer window is to finish stronger than you start it and thanks to the in-depth research and planning that has been conducted during the months leading up to January, we feel confident that we have achieved this.
"We have obviously had additional challenges to overcome even before the window opened, particularly the enforced change in head coach, however, our transfer strategy had been clear since this last summer and we have also been in a good position to address unexpected needs due to injury.
“I believe there is good alignment with Tony Mowbray and the coaching staff on how to take this squad forward.
“Our squad planning model is centred around creating a mix of peak-year performance players in the 23-25 and 26-29 age categories, and young developing U23 talents. This can enable the club to compete at the highest level, but also develop players and optimise trading opportunities.
“We believe the squad adjustments made in the past month help us tremendously as we seek to adopt a more attack-minded playing style, create a pipeline of top young talent, and simultaneously reinforce the squad for the moment we’re in now. These signings also address the anticipated evolution of the squad into next season.
“We now have a nucleus of young, developing talent at the club, some of whom are impactful regulars in the first team already, and a core of experienced peak-year performance players.
“The overarching strategy for the 2025/26 season is in place, and behind the scenes we have aligned and bolstered our scouting and data capabilities to effectively navigate the market.”
On midfielders Isaac Price and Tammer Bany:
“Isaac was a standout performer at just 21 years old during his time with Standard Liége, and we have already begun to see glimpses of what he can be capable of in a Baggies shirt.
“Tammer Bany is the same age and has been a top attacking player in the Danish Superliga with a goal contribution every 121 minutes played, as well as achieving the second-highest number of assists and the most ball regains per 90 minutes in the division.”
On strikers Will Lankshear and Adam Armstrong:
“We have added two strikers on loan, who we are confident can make an immediate impact.
“Many will be familiar with Adam Armstrong because of his goalscoring exploits at this level. He is a player that can quickly integrate to our squad.
“Will Lankshear is another player we had been tracking and he will now have an opportunity to showcase his quality in an extremely competitive league as he continues his development.”
On the club’s PSR position:
“There has been the additional benefit of significantly strengthening our PSR (Profit & Sustainability Rules) position, which has been crucial considering the perilous place the club found itself just 12 months ago.
“We are continuing to strategically navigate this situation whilst remaining competitive in the league and investing in the club’s future through the decisions made in these last two transfer windows.
“Looking back to last season, the average age of the squad weighted for minutes played was the oldest in the Championship and the fifth-most expensive yet would have finished outside the play-off places in terms of points-per-match based on results in the second half of that season.
“We have since been assembling a cohesive squad built around a more offensive-minded style of play. This year, we have reinvested in key players that were already here, as well as invested in new impact acquisitions and several top players under 21. The average age of the squad has been reduced and we have created capacity to continue investment in the future.”
On the goalkeeping department:
“Finally, I wish to make special mention of Alex Palmer following his transfer to Ipswich Town. He has given tremendous service to this club over a significant period of his life from his days learning his trade in the club’s academy to going on to make over a century of appearances in our first team – on behalf of everyone here, we wish him well for the next chapter.
“We all agreed this was the best decision at this stage for both him and the club with Alex approaching the final year of his contract, while we also have great belief in the quality of goalkeepers coming through.
“We are happy to have Josh Griffiths return to us for the second half of the season after being a standout performer on loan with Bristol Rovers, and he will now have the opportunity to compete with Joe Wildsmith for the number one jersey here.”
