West Brom & Sheffield United could sign the new Harvey Barnes for just £3m

The Championship has been a brilliant training ground for some fantastic players in the Premier League and across Europe, with West Bromwich Albion playing their part along the way.

Some truly sensational footballers have made their way through the EFL in recent years. Look no further than Bayern Munich superstar Michael Olise, who started his career with Reading.

Jack Grealish, who left Aston Villa to sign for Manchester City for £100m in 2021, played for Notts County and Villa in the EFL before his rise to stardom.

The Baggies may not have birthed stars like Grealish and Olise of late, but they did play a key role in the development of Harvey Barnes earlier in his career.

He racked up nine goals, ten ‘big chances’ created, and six assists in 26 Championship games on loan from Leicester City in the first half of the 2018/19 campaign.

Why West Brom need to find their new Harvey Barnes

Now, the priority for new head coach James Morrison in the upcoming summer transfer window should be to find the club’s next version of Barnes on the wing.

The Baggies only scored 48 goals in 46 games in the second tier this season, narrowly evading relegation to League One, and they need to bolster their squad with more quality at the top end of the pitch.

Mikey Johnston provided quality as a creative threat, with nine assists in the second tier, but the former Celtic attacker did not offer enough of a threat as a goalscorer.

West Brom need to find a player, like Barnes, who can offer goals and assists on a regular basis in the final third to elevate the club’s attack to the next level, so that they can kick on and push for promotion in the 2026/27 campaign under Morrison.

The Baggies have already been linked with an EFL attacker who could fit the bill, but they may have to beat off competition from their divisional rivals first.

West Brom could sign their next Harvey Barnes for £3m

West Brom have been linked with an interest in bringing Reyes Cleary back to The Hawthorns, after selling him to Barnsley last year, and a fee of £3m could be enough to get a deal over the line.

However, Championship rivals Sheffield United, managed by Chris Wilder, are among the other teams interested in signing the forward, in a move that could allow them to play Gus Hamer centrally instead of off the flank.

His form in League One for Barnsley in the 2025/26 campaign suggests that Morrison must push the club to beat the Blades to his signature, as he could be a phenomenal addition to the squad.

Cleary outperformed his xG to score seven goals, more than three times as many as Johnston scored in the Championship, and registered a staggering 13 assists, whilst no player in the second tier produced more than 12 assists.

West Brom appear to be regret selling him to Barnsley last summer because they are now reportedly keen on bringing him back, which would be an admission that they got it wrong last year.

The Baggies already had an incredibly talented young attacker on their hands, as evidenced by his 29 goals for the U18s and 28 goals for the U21s, but they did not give him a single league appearance in the 2023/24 or 2024/25 seasons to prove himself.

Cleary’s success at Barnsley is perhaps a lesson to learn for West Brom, as it suggests that they should provide their promising young players with more first-team opportunities, which could help them to develop more top-class prospects from their academy.

They made that mistake with the 22-year-old star, though, and it is now time for them to reverse that error by paying £3m to bring him back to The Hawthorns, beating Sheffield United to his signature.

Cleary’s ability to score and create goals at an impressive rate as a right-footed left winger suggests that he could be the club’s next version of Barnes in the Championship, as the Foxes loanee delivered regularly as a scorer and a creator during his time in the midlands.

The Baggies must now submit an official offer for the English wing wizard as soon as possible to ensure that the Blades do not edge ahead of them in the race to secure his services in the summer transfer window.