West Bromwich Albion have allegedly rejected an offer for Jay Rodriguez, but are they better off selling and signing Middlesbrough’s Britt Assombalonga?
The Sun suggests that Burnley and West Bromwich Albion will be fighting it out for Middlesbrough striker Britt Assombalonga after the former failed to sign Jay Rodriguez from the latter.
The Clarets had a £16m offer to bring Rodriguez back to Turf Moor rejected by West Brom, with the Guardian reporting they want at least £20m to sell the forward.
As a result the Lancashire club are looking at alternatives and instead could rival the Baggies for a player they are particularly keen on in Assombalonga.
It is not known how much it would cost to land the Boro star, but Darren Moore knows he can not spend any more money at the Hawthorns until it is raised through the sale of players – such as Rodriguez.
What the stats say
While Rodriguez did have a decent first season in the West Midlands following a 2017 switch from Southampton, netting 11 goals in 42 games, in the Championship he and Assombalonga have played almost exactly the same amount of times and yet their scoring records differ.
The former has 114 appearances to his name in the second tier of English football, with 32 goals. Assombalonga, in contrast, has scored 45 times in 115 matches.
Not only that but Rodriguez is three-and-a-half years older, suggesting that perhaps West Brom should allow their attacker to leave if it means a clear route to sign the Democratic Republic of Congo international.
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