Grady Diangana transfer development after West Brom exit
Grady Diangana, the winger released by West Bromwich Albion at the end of last season, has reportedly been approached by Saudi Pro League outfit Al-Ettifaq.
However, it's believed the player would rather remain in Europe than head to the Middle East – with supposed interest from his former Baggies boss Carlos Corberan.
Advertisement
His six-year stay at The Hawthorns came to an end in the summer. Having joined on an initial loan deal from West Ham United in 2019, the attacker agreed a five-year contract with the club after helping them seal promotion under Slaven Bilic in 2020.
READ MORE: Championship clubs told to pay £1m for ex-Birmingham City wonderboy
READ MORE: Birmingham City have created a new role for Lukas Jutkiewicz after retirement
Diangana, who set Albion back an initial £12m, struggled for consistency and after Bilic's exit he failed to establish himself under Sam Allardyce but did return to something like his best form in spells over the last four campaigns.
Advertisement
Under Corberan, in 2023-24, Diangana was at his most fruitful. As Albion reached the play-offs he made 15 goal contributions in 36 Championship appearances.
But last year Diangana's numbers were a little more modest. As a result, Albion decided against extending his stay and he's now on the look out for a new club.
Transfer guru Fabrizio Romano claims the 27-year-old has been contacted by Saudi outfit Al-Ettifaq, who finished seventh in the Pro League last year, offering a lucrative offer.
But Diangana would rather remain in Europ, with suggestions that Corberan, who is working again with former Albion chief executive Ron Gourlay at Valencia, might take him to the La Liga club.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
35 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Elliot Anderson finishes off Spain as England Under-21s reach Euros' last four
Lee Carsley said this week that achieving back-to-back European titles at under-21 level could help to enhance the reputation of British coaches, not to mention this group of young England players. An impressive quarter-final victory over pre-tournament favourites Spain intent on dishing out revenge will certainly not have done either any harm. Having struggled to reach the last eight with an inexperienced squad that is one of the youngest in Slovakia, goals from James McAtee and Harvey Elliott – both of whom have uncertain futures at their clubs – and a late penalty from Elliot Anderson sealed another triumph for Carsley over the same opponents England saw off in the 2023 final. With the Netherlands up next in Wednesday's semi-final in Bratislava, he is now two matches away from matching Dave Sexton's feat of winning this competition in 1982 and 1984. Advertisement Related: Spain 1-3 England: European Under-21 Championship quarter-final – live reaction Spain have become regular opponents for England in the latter stages of various youth tournaments over recent years, although only their coach, Santi Denia, remained from their bad-tempered defeat in the final of this competition two years ago in Georgia when both sides had a member of the coaching staff and a player sent off. Denia has had to do without players such as Lamine Yamal – who will still be eligible for this tournament in 2029 – and Real Madrid's new signing Dean Huijsen, but has built a team around the Valencia playmaker Javi Guerra that sailed through the group stages. It seemed that England might be overwhelmed in the first two minutes when Diego López headed over from close range and the Italian referee, Simone Sozza, pointed to the spot after a powerful shot from López struck Charlie Cresswell on the arm. But the video assistant referee saw it differently and – to the Toulouse defender's relief as he pumped his fist in celebration – the penalty was overturned. That proved to be the wake-up call England needed. McAtee looks set to leave Manchester City this summer, having been allowed to play here rather than travel to the Club World Cup, and showed his eye for goal when he was quickest to react after Spain made a hash of clearing Alex Scott's corner. Advertisement Jarell Quansah was the architect of the second after Birmingham's Jay Stansfield, leading the line as one of four changes from the defeat by Germany in midweek, forced a loose pass. The Liverpool defender is on the verge of joining Bayer Leverkusen for £30m, while Elliott's future at Anfield is also in question after the arrival of Florian Wirtz from the German club. But when Quansah strode forward and unleashed a shot that was not convincingly saved, Elliott was on hand to turn in the rebound. Suddenly England were rampant as Tino Livramento came close to extending their lead when he forced Alejandro Iturbe into a save at his near post. Spain looked dazed and were grateful to be handed a lifeline from the spot. Scott gave the ball away in a dangerous area and when Quansah tripped Alberto Moleiro, this time there was no debate as Guerra swept home the penalty. England looked determined to finish the job at the start of the second half. But Stansfield's touch let him down following another surging run from Quansah and his shot deflected over, with Cresswell heading the corner inches wide. Anderson – a surprise omission for Liverpool's Tyler Morton having started all three group stage games – was brought on with Jonathan Rowe as Carsley rolled the dice. Denia also made two changes, with James Beadle forced into a double save to keep out Guerra. There were hearts in mouths when a cross from the right fizzed across the six-yard area but Cresswell came to England's rescue with an acrobatic clearance. Spain continued to press for an equaliser and Jack Hinshelwood could have settled Carsley's nerves had he directed a free header from Anderson's cross on target rather than over the crossbar. But when Jonathan Rowe was brought down by Iturbe in injury time, Anderson made no mistake with his penalty and even some unsavoury scenes at the final whistle when members of the Spain bench provoked a confrontation will not have dampened England's delight.
Yahoo
40 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Revealed: Why Son Heung-min and two other Tottenham Hotspur stars did NOT receive Europa League medals
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Son Heung-min was one of three players not to receive his medal on the San Mames pitch. | Credit: Getty Images UEFA have revealed why three Tottenham Hotspur players, including Son Heung-min, did not receive their Europa League winners' medals on Wednesday night. Advertisement It was all celebrations for Ange Postecoglou's men at San Mames, as they edged past Manchester United in the Europa League by a single goal, scored by Brennan Johnson. He duly received his medal at the end of the game from UEFA bosses, but not all his teammates were so lucky. UEFA explain Tottenham's missing medals Cristian Romero was another Spurs star to leave the stage empty-handed | Credit: Getty Images Son, Rodrigo Bentancur and Cristian Romero all left the medals podium empty-handed, despite all playing a part in the final and the previous rounds. UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin could be seen throwing his fellow officials a glance when he realised they'd run out of medals to present to the Spurs stars. The medals shortage produced an awkward moment for UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin The governing body have since revealed that the problem arose after Tottenham sent more players to receive a medal than UEFA expected. Advertisement Both the winners and runners-up are given 50 medals each to distribute as they see fit, but only 30 are taken out onto the pitch. In a statement, UEFA said: 'To our great displeasure, we did not have enough medals available on stage during the trophy ceremony presentation due to an unexpected discrepancy in the player count, as more team members - including injured players - participated in the ceremony than initially anticipated. 'The missing medals were promptly delivered to the winning team in the dressing room, along with our sincerest apologies for the oversight.' Son and his colleagues did, thankfully, receive their medals at a later point in the dressing room | Credit: Alamy Given that Spurs sent up the likes of Sergio Regulion before captain Son – the former having not played a single minute in the competition – Spurs bear more than a little responsibility for the mix-up themselves, in FourFourTwo's opinion. Advertisement But trophies and silverware have not been a regular occurrence for the Lilywhites of late, so you can forgive a little eagerness in the moment. Tottenham next face Brighton & Hove Albion when Premier League action returns for the final day this weekend.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
One game to win it all: Thunder host Pacers in NBA Finals game 7
Myles Turner of the Indiana Pacers drives to the basket against Chet Holmgren of the Oklahoma City Thunder in game six of the NBA Finals (Maddie Meyer) The Oklahoma City Thunder and Indiana Pacers are poised for an epic championship showdown on Sunday, the Thunder seeking to crown an historic season with a victory over a tenacious Pacers team that has stunningly forced a rare NBA Finals game seven. "We've got one game," Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton said. "One game. Nothing that has happened before matters and nothing that's going to happen after matters. It's all about that one game." Advertisement The Thunder certainly know it too. "One game for everything you ever dreamed of," Oklahoma City's newly minted NBA Most Valuable Player Shai Gilgeous-Alexander said after the Thunder slumped to a blowout loss in game six. "If you win it, you get everything. If you lose it, you get nothing." The Thunder remain heavy favorites. A victory on their home floor on Sunday would crown a dazzling campaign in which they led the league with 68 regular-season wins and set a league record for average scoring margin. Gilgeous-Alexander led the NBA in scoring with 32.7 points per game and could become the first player since Golden State's Stephen Curry in 2015 to win the MVP award and the title in the same season. Advertisement In addition, home teams are 15-4 in Finals game sevens. But the last time the championship series went the distance, in 2016, LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers completed a stunning triumph over the Golden State Warriors in Oakland. And the Pacers have proven repeatedly this season, and in this series, that they can't be counted out. The Pacers opened their season with four straight defeats and at 10-15 were languishing in 10th place in the East with almost a third of the campaign gone. But with a raft of injuries behind them, the Pacers had the best record in the East from New Year's Day to the end of the regular season. Advertisement Seeded fourth in the East, the Pacers beat the Giannis Antetokounmpo-led Milwaukee Bucks, the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers and the third-seeded New York Knicks to reach the Finals. Haliburton, inexplicably voted the "most overrated" player in the league in an anonymous player poll this season, has had the last laugh with a string of clutch performances -- including the last-gasp game-winner in the Pacers' 111-110 game-one triumph. The Pacers won two of the first three games of the series before the Thunder won two straight to give themselves a first chance to clinch in game six -- when Haliburton shook off a right calf strain to inspire his teammates to a lopsided victory that knotted the series at three games apiece. Now Indiana have a chance to claim a first NBA championship for a franchise that won three American Basketball Association titles but struggled so much financially after joining the NBA in 1976 that their future was in doubt. Advertisement "I think the expectations for this group from an external viewpoint coming into the year weren't very high," Haliburton said. "They weren't very high coming into the playoffs. They weren't very high going into the second round of the playoffs. They weren't very high going into the third round. They weren't very high now. "I think we just have done a great job of just staying together. There's not a group of guys I'd rather go to war with." - Use the muscles - The top-seeded Thunder swept the Memphis Grizzlies, then beat Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets in seven games before ousting the Minnesota Timberwolves to become the youngest team to reach the Finals since 1977. Advertisement They can claim the franchise's first title since a controversial move to Oklahoma City in 2008, having won it all in 1979 as the Seattle SuperSonics. Gilgeous-Alexander says the Thunder have what it takes to win if they play to their potential. "I don't think I have to do anything special because of the stage," he said. "We just have to be who we've been all year and then use the muscles that we've trained all year." Both teams stressed the importance of setting aside the emotion of the moment, but Gilgeous-Alexander said the Thunder must play with a sense of urgency against the relentless Pacers. "It has to be an emphasis," he said. "It has to be the top of our mind. It has to be all we care about, and above all, we just have to want to do it." bb/js
