West Bromwich Albion have slashed Sam Johnstone’s price-tag by £8 million as the Arsenal and West Ham United target faces another season stuck at the Championship outfit, as reported by The Athletic.
The England international has made no secret of his desire to stay in the Premier League, having made more saves than any other goalkeeper in the top flight last term.
But with just over a month of the transfer window remaining, it is becoming increasingly difficult to imagine Johnstone being offered a route out of West Brom.
Wolves have replaced Rui Patricio with another Jorge Mendes client in the shape of Jose Sa, while Tottenham are on the verge of a deal for Atalanta’s Pierluigi Gollini.
Manchester United, meanwhile, brought back another Old Trafford academy graduate in Tom Heaton instead.
Will Sam Johnstone now be forced to stay at West Brom?
It remains to be seen whether Arsenal or West Ham return to the table for Johnstone with West Brom reducing his price-tag from £20 million to £12 million.
Arsenal appear to have their sights firmly fixed on signing Sheffield United’s Aaron Ramsdale instead, while West Ham have been in talks with PSG’s ex-Fulham stopper Alphonse Areola since the middle of last week.
Johnstone, then, may have no choice but to stay put and see out the final year of his contract.
In an ideal world, West Brom would look to keep arguably the finest goalkeeper in the Championship. But, with Johnstone set to become a free agent in 2022, it makes sense to cash in now, especially given that David Button and Alex Palmer are ready to step up to the plate.
Baggies boss Valerien Ismael admitted earlier in the window that he expected Brazilian play-maker Matheus Pereira to leave the club too.
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