West Bromwich Albion manager Sam Allardyce has revealed that the Baggies would be interested in making a potential move for Bournemouth forward Josh King, but only if the price matches what they can afford.
King has been the subject of intense speculation throughout the last few weeks, with Wolves being the latest club to have been credited with an interest in the Norway international.
However, they are thought to be reluctant to agree on a permanent deal for him, while the likes of West Ham, West Brom and Newcastle United are also in the race for his signature.
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The Cherries are thought to be placing a valuation of around £15 million on the forward this month.
Speaking to Sky Sports, after the Baggies’ defeat on penalties to Blackpool in the FA Cup on Saturday, Allardyce suggested that West Brom are in need of players this month and that King could be an option for the right sort of price.
He said: "No idea what the price may be [for King] - if the price is within our range then I think we would be interested, and if it's out of our price range then we won't."
"It's a part of our process now to work tirelessly on outs and ins until the end of January. There's no point me beating about the bush - everybody knows what we need to do."
The Verdict
King is a player with proven Premier League quality and Bournemouth are facing a real battle to hang onto this month. The forward has not been able to have the sort of impact in the league he would have been hoping for so far this term, having failed to score in eight appearances for the Cherries.
However, the attacker is still clearly focused on performing for Bournemouth and he scored twice during their FA Cup third round win against Oldham Athletic on Saturday. Therefore, the Cherries know that they do not have to rush into selling him, and they could decide to hold onto him in the hope he can fire them to promotion.
West Brom need players in so the Cherries are likely to factor that into any potential negotiations over King. The Baggies’ budget does not seem to be too large so if they hold firm over their valuation of him it might be enough to prevent the Premier League strugglers from firming up their interest.