Speaking exclusively to Football FanCast, former West Brom midfielder Carlton Palmer believes his old side signing Ross Barkley was always going to be a difficult task.

At the end of the summer transfer window, it had looked like Burnley were Barkley's only way out of Chelsea, with the Express reporting that the Clarets were interested in doing a deadline day deal for the player.

However, according to The Telegraph's Matt Law, West Brom were also in the equation after being offered the chance to sign the attacking midfielder.

Wages, though, proved to be a stumbling block (also per Law), which comes as no surprise to Palmer.

"How do West Brom go anywhere near that?" the ex-England international said. "He's reported to be on £110,000 a week.

"They'd have to be helped out by Chelsea an awful lot. I don't know what's happened to Ross, really. I mean, he's a really talented player, but from his burst on the scene, he hasn't really fulfilled his potential."

Maybe a move to a team in the Championship like West Brom is something Barkley needed.

His loan spell at Aston Villa last season did not go too well, something Thomas Tuchel recently spoke about, and he is not going to play at Chelsea given the level of competition in both midfield and attack.