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This article is part of Football FanCast's Transfer Focus series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent transfer news...
According to Football Insider, West Brom now have rivals in their pursuit of Chelsea's Trevoh Chalobah, with Fulham joining the race to sign him on loan.
What's the word?
West Brom have been at the centre of numerous transfer links this window with options in midfield stretching from Shinji Kagawa to the likes of Jonny Williams and Tolgay Arslan.
However, they're now also chasing a potential loan signing.
Football Insider recently reported that they were chasing a deal for the 6 ft 3 former Ipswich loanee, but now another side have joined those pursuing Chalobah.
The same source suggests that Fulham are now ready to rival the Baggies in order to bring him back to the Championship on a temporary stay.
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New midfield option
During the 2018/19 season, Albion's midfield was missing steel.
In the middle, they were particularly lightweight with Rekeem Harper playing a regular part alongside players such as Chris Brunt in the latter stages of the term.
Therefore, the addition of Chalobah could work wonders for West Brom by giving them an entirely new proposition.
The 19-year-old was impressive despite playing in what was ultimately an incredibly poor side as Ipswich were relegated.
He played from the start on 35 occasions whilst making a further eight appearances off the bench. Over the course of the season, he won a colossal 2.7 aerial duels per game, which for a midfield player is incredibly promising.
Chalobah has a real physical presence in front of the back four and therefore, he'd give them something they lack; a bullish attitude.
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The highest number of aerial duels won per game by a Baggies midfielder in 2018/19 was a mere 1.4, managed by Gareth Barry.
Brunt, on the other hand, won 1.1. whilst Harper and Sam Field managed just one per outing.
Their qualities in terms of that aspect are measly compared to what Chalobah can muster in the middle of the park.
If Slaven Bilic can convince him to join West Brom over Fulham, they'd be far better equipped in midfield than they were last term.