West Brom ‘expected’ to part ways with injury-stricken defender as Sunderland ‘target’ Villarreal wonderkid

West Brom are set for a two-week break as several of their players depart The Hawthorns to link up with their international teammates. Five senior Albion stars have been selected by their nations.

Captain Dara O’Shea and Jayson Molumby will feature for the Republic of Ireland for their friendly against Latvia and their UEFA EURO qualifier against France, while Daryl Dike has been named in the USA squad for their CONCACAF Nations League fixtures.

Meanwhile Semi Ajayi will compete in a double-header against Guinea-Bissau with Nigeria over the weekend and Josh Griffiths will link up with the England U21’s side for their friendlies against France and Croatia. Elsewhere, Reyes Cleary and Ben Cisse have been called up to the England U19 and U18 teams respectively.

Here are the latest transfer headlines from the Championship...

Defender on his way out

West Brom are expected to part ways with Kean Bryan when his contract expires in the summer, with Birmingham Live revealing the club won’t extend his stay at the Baggies.

The defender joined the Baggies on a free transfer after leaving Sheffield United in 2021, however he has since struggled with injuries and has only managed three appearances in total. Bryan last featured for West Brom in their 1-0 win over Hull City only two months after he arrived in the Midlands before he picked up an ACL injury that has kept him out ever since.

Bryan, who began his career with Man City, only turned 26 a few months ago and will be eager to get his career back on track if he is able to fully recover from his injury problems.

Sunderland ‘target’ wonderkid

Sunderland are interested in signing Villarreal youngster Haissem Hassan, according to French outlet L’Equipe. The Black Cats have become well known for bringing in young players and developing them, with the likes of Amad Diallo, Dan Ballard and Dan Neil recently excelling at the Stadium of Light.

Hassan has enjoyed a brilliant campaign with Villarreal B this season, making 26 appearances and even catching the eye of senior boss Quique Setien. The youngster began training with Villarreal’s first team and went onto make his La Liga debut against Mallorca last month, however he has continued to feature for the youth side since.

Hassan’s impressive form has attracted interest from abroad and Sunderland are said to have joined the likes of Brentford and Anderlecht in expressing interest in signing the forward. The report claims that Hassan is contracted to the Yellow Submarine until 2024 so could potentially be on his way out if the Spanish club can’t tie him down to a longer deal this summer.

Hassan could join a number of French players to recently make the move to Wearside, with French owner Kyril Louis-Dreyfus overseeing the arrivals of Abdoullah Ba, Isaac Lihadji, Edouard Michut and Pierre Ekwah.

Man Utd to ‘win race’ for Watford starlet

Manchester United are close to completing the signing of Watford’s Harry Amass, according to the Evening Standard. The Red Devils will beat Chelsea to his signature, with the Blues also keen on snapping up the youngster.

The defender only turned 16 years old last week but was named in the Hornets’ matchday squad for their FA Cup clash with Reading back in January and has also featured their under-18s this season. Amass is yet to sign a scholarship with Watford whcih would keep him for a further two years and the report claims that he will instead take up that option with United.

Chelsea were previously thought to be leading the race for the teenager, however it is thought that they have since fallen behind their rivals. The Blues’ academy would have been a strong option for Amass, previously developing the likes of Mason Mount, Reece James and Fikayo Tomori, however Old Trafford certainly wouldn’t be a bad option for the left-back.