West Bromwich Albion boss Valerien Ismael has had his say on the signing of Kean Bryan after completing a deal for the 24-year-old earlier today, during a recent interview with the club's official website.

The centre back had previously been a free agent since leaving Sheffield United earlier in the summer and becomes Albion's sixth new addition of the season since Ismael took charge at the Hawthorns.

Bryan has signed a two year contract with the Baggies and will now be seeking to get his fitness up in anticipation of being involved in the club's Sky Bet Championship campaign over the next couple of months.

Speaking shortly after the deal for the defender was announced, Ismael had this to say about his latest signing:

"Kean has the same profile as a defender as Dara. He is a very aggressive, fast, centre-back, who is good in the build-up, is young, wants to learn, and has experience, so his profile is very good for us.

"The main difference to Dara is that Kean is left-footed and with Matt Clarke also out this was an opportunity for us to sign a player who can also play on the left side of our back three, as it is important to the balance of our team to have left-footed players in left-sided positions.

"Now, we need to build Kean into the squad and into the team. He didn't have a normal pre-season and we need to manage him. At the same time, we will need him in the games, so we need to find the right balance."

Bryan only played 15 times for Sheffield United last season prior to his release and understandably became frustrated at Bramall Lane due to the lack of first team opportunities coming his way.

The left footed defender will now be looking to make an impact for the Midlands outfit, with his ability to also play in midfield sure to come in handy throughout the season.

The Verdict 

This is a very smart signing by the Baggies as it gives their defence balance and depth as we head into a busy portion of the season.

Bryan didn't really get a good enough chance with the Blades to prove himself and will be hoping that he will have better fortunes at the Hawthorns moving forwards.

He is arguably pretty unproven at Championship level and it may well take him some time to adapt to playing regularly after going without a full pre-season.

It will be interesting to see if he can nail down a starting spot in what is a very strong West Brom squad at the club.