League One sides Sheffield Wednesday and Fleetwood Town are battling to secure a loan move for West Bromwich Albion forward Rayhaan Tulloch, according to The Sun's Alan Nixon.

Despite Valerien Ismael's enthusiasm to gamble on some of Albion's younger players, with Taylor Gardner-Hickman becoming an important figure at The Hawthorns and Tom Fellows also emerging as a first-team option, Tulloch has found his senior playing time at The Hawthorns limited this term.

He made it onto the bench against Brighton and Hove Albion for the Baggies' FA Cup tie earlier this month - but has only made one senior appearance for them this term and that came in the form of a very short cameo against Blackburn Rovers back in August.

 

 

Daryl Dike's arrival from Orlando City and Matt Phillips' return from injury has only gone on to block the 20-year-old's pathway to the first team despite his promise - and with that - the second-tier side could potentially sanction a loan move until the end of the 2021/22 campaign.

Darren Moore's Owls are one side thought to be interested in a move with the ex-Baggie regularly opting to play two up top at Hillsborough, although they face stern competition from Stephen Crainey's Fleetwood who are still seemingly on the prowl for another forward this window.

They secured the permanent addition of Portsmouth's Ellis Harrison earlier this month - but are not done there with Tulloch firmly in their sights.

The Verdict:

The experience of playing in front of a Hillsborough crowd could be an extremely valuable experience for Tulloch, though it remains to be seen which club West Brom choose if they do decide to open the door to a temporary exit with manager Moore already having plenty of attacking options at his disposal in South Yorkshire.

However, Ismael also has plenty of players ahead of the 20-year-old in the pecking order and this is why, at 20, he should be winning more senior minutes on the pitch if he wants to make the grade at The Hawthorns.

Fleetwood are also an attractive option as another third-tier competitor - and he would benefit hugely from the experience of Harrison - but whichever side can guarantee him more playing time is likely to win his signature.

Finances could also come into play in terms of who offers to pay a bigger proportion of his wages and a higher loan fee - but the Baggies have enough financial power as a recently relegated side from the Premier League to subsidise his wages without it affecting their incoming transfer business.

If he does go, it wouldn't be a surprise to see another promising forward in Reyes Cleary remain in the West Midlands - and potentially receive more first-team opportunities.