Should West Brom target Abel Hernandez if Salomon Rondon leaves?

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West Bromwich Albion need to start making plans for the summer with Premier League relegation looking more than likely.

On paper, West Brom’s strongest lineup is a team that should be good enough to be nowhere near the bottom three in the Premier League, so the prospect of falling into the Championship should not be as big a concern for the Baggies as it was for Sunderland when they went down 12 months ago.

Ominously however, the Black Cats finished with three points more than West Brom currently have and they notched up six wins during the campaign – a tally that the Baggies seem to be in no danger of emulating with five games to go and just three wins on the board.

Championship football next season therefore seems to be a formality. And a clear-out appears to be just as inevitable, with Salomon Rondon seemingly one of those likely to jump ship when the campaign concludes.

The Telegraph recently reported that relegation will activate a clause in the striker’s contract that will enable the Venezuelan to leave for £16.5 million, and West Ham are ready to offer him the chance to stay in the top flight should they manage to beat the drop.

Rondon may not be prolific, but losing him would be a blow to a West Brom side that simply do not have the attacking depth that would allow them to not prioritise signing a new striker in the summer.

And perhaps the striker they should look at signing is Hull’s Abel Hernandez, who has been lethal when he has played and will be available on a free transfer.

Transfermarkt shows that the Uruguayan is out of contract this summer, and he is likely to attract a number of offers given that he has scored seven goals in eight games this term to guide the Tigers away from the bottom three in the second tier.

It is a stunning return, but should perhaps surprise few given that he scored 21 times in Hull’s previous Championship campaign. He is the kind of player that West Brom must do all they can to sign.

A clear-out may give the Baggies the perfect chance to put this season behind them, but there is an element of risk attached as the Black Cats have found out this term. Replacing Rondon with Hernandez however, could prove to be a fantastic piece of business especially if the two deals see the Baggies end up with a £16.5 million profit.