Former Burnley defender Erik Pieters insists that he plans to ‘continue playing football’ as West Brom weigh up whether or not to offer the free-agent a contract at the Hawthorns, speaking to Lancs Live.
Baggies boss Steve Bruce, after what he described as a ‘devastating’ end to the transfer window, admitted that the free-agent market could come in very handy for a West Bromwich Albion side lacking depth in a number of key areas.
Like at left-back, for instance.
Conor Townsend, after all, is the only natural left-sided defender in Bruce’s squad. Hardly an ideal situation, with an already gruelling Championship fixture list packed even more tightly than usual with a pre-Christmas World Cup looming on the horizon.
Erik Pieters’ continued availability, then, could come in very handy indeed.
“I am happy and want to continue playing football,” explains the former Dutch international, having turned 34 in August.
“That is what I love. (My age) is just a number because I feel great and I feel I showed last season I could handle the Premier League fitness-wise and football-wise.
“The moment my body can’t handle it, I will stop. But I have a few years left yet.”
Will West Brom sign former Burnley left-back Erik Pieters
That may be all the encouragement West Brom need. Per Alan Nixon, Albion are set to offer Pieters a contract after the one-time Stoke City defender spent the last few days training with the stumbling Championship outfit.
West Brom could also bring in former Celtic playmaker Tom Rogic.
“I spoke with the owners,” Pieters adds, explaining his departure from Burnley in the summer. “I had a conversation with them about how they see me and what they want to do with me. They said they wanted to give me a new deal depending on where we are in the league but that I was an experienced player and they wanted me to continue.
“So I waited and waited, got one offer, and there is always space to talk. But I never heard back from them. I went on holiday and had a text saying I was leaving and so I found out that way when we didn’t hear anything back from Burnley.
“It was weird. When you get you first offer you always go back and talk, sometimes it takes a week or sometimes three months but they were really strict and never came back with anything.
“I asked to train with them (this summer) to keep up my fitness. But it was; ‘no you are not welcome.’ So that was clear and that chapter was quickly closed.”
There are a few pages left in Pieters’ tale, however. His story is not over yet.
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