This article is part of Football League World’s ‘The Verdict‘ series, which provides personal opinions from the FLW writers regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Steve Bruce could be set to reunite with Dwight Gayle for next season, according to the Northern Echo.

West Brom will face competition from Middlesbrough and Sheffield United in a race to secure the 32-year old’s signature.

Here we ask our FLW writers their verdict on if the striker would be a good addition to the Baggies’ squad…

Simmey Hannifin-Donaldson

West Brom have an abundance of strikers on the books at present, so in that sense, this is certainly not a signing that should be a priority.

After a significant fee was paid for the striker in January, you would expect Daryl Dike to be the main man up front for the Baggies next campaign, with the American yet to show what he can do at The Hawthorns due to injury. 

Elsewhere, the club have Karlan Grant, who contributed with 25 direct goal involvements (18 goals, seven assists) throughout the 2021/22 campaign.

Whilst Gayle has shown he is capable of being prolific at Championship level, I wouldn't play him ahead of the two players above at this stage, and why would he want to swap the bench at St. James' Park for the one at The Hawthorns?

Carla Devine

Dwight Gayle is a brilliant signing in this league and he would definitely be able to provide West Brom with the services they need in front of goal next season.

In the 2016-17 season when Newcastle gained Championship promotion, Gayle contributed 23 goals and during his last time with the Baggies in the 2018-19 season, he scored 24 in all competitions showing his consistent ability to perform at this level.

 

 

It’s clear the striker doesn’t have a future at Newcastle United but he will be keen to play as much as possible and he already knows the Hawthorns from his time with the club a few years ago.

Furthermore, he worked under Steve Bruce at Newcastle too so will have a good idea about the manager’s ways of working and what to expect from him.

Josh Cole

This would be a superb move by West Brom if they are able to secure the services of Gayle this summer as he has a fantastic track-record in the Championship.

During his loan spell at The Hawthorns, the forward formed a fruitful partnership with Jay Rodriguez as he managed to find the back of the net on 24 occasions in the 2018/19 campaign.

Having struggled for game-time at Newcastle, a move to a team in the second-tier may be exactly what the forward needs at this stage of his career.

By maintaining his fitness and building a rapport with West Brom's attacking players, Gayle could potentially spearhead a push for promotion next season.