Helder Costa has enjoyed an excellent season in the Championship with Wolverhampton Wanderers, so should West Bromwich Albion target a move?
Helder Costa celebrates scoring
One of Wolves’ biggest tasks this summer will be trying to hold onto Helder Costa after his excellent first season in the Championship, with the Birmingham Mail reporting that Arsenal and Chelsea are targeting the £20 million-rated forward.
While the stature of the clubs already interested means that it would be an uphill battle, West Brom should look to make Wolves’ job more difficult by attempting a move themselves when the window opens.
The Baggies have enjoyed an extremely promising campaign themselves and look set to secure a comfortable top-half finish in the Premier League, so face a crucial summer trying to build upon the potential they have shown this term.
Signing a player of Costa’s calibre could be an excellent piece of business for Tony Pulis’ men, even if it takes the hefty fee to bring him in from Molineux.
West Brom manager Tony Pulis
The Portuguese has been exceptional in the Championship, reaching double figures for league goals and contributing nearly as many assists for Paul Lambert’s men.
If he is capable of doing that in his first year in a division as tough for playmakers as the Championship, then he is surely destined to cut it at the highest level in the near future.
It would be a gamble to pay the eight-figure asking price, but his form in conjunction with the calibre of the teams reportedly chasing him suggests that he is good enough to handle being that talisman in the top-half of the top flight.
And while some Baggies fans may doubt that they would be able to tempt him to the Hawthorns with Arsenal and Chelsea reportedly keen, Pulis may have some luck by suggesting that he would enjoy considerably more game-time with West Brom than he would with one of the heavyweights.
And if Costa can replicate the form he has shown at Wolves this term – which is arguably more impressive given their struggles for much of the campaign – following a move to West Brom, then the Baggies would undoubtedly have a great chance of building on what has been a hugely promising season.
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