Bruce can form powerful WBA duo with £14k-p/w "man mountain", imagine him & Bartley - opinion

West Bromwich Albion manager Steve Bruce mentioned in recent weeks that he will be looking to conduct a rather significant overhaul at The Hawthorns during the upcoming summer transfer window.

Having ended the season in 10th place with 67 points on the board after winning 18, drawing 13 and losing 15 of their 46 games, it’s easy to see why it could be a busy summer for the Baggies as they aim to win promotion back to the Premier League.

One area of the squad where the Midlands club could look to strengthen is in defence.

Despite conceding just 45 goals, fewer than all but three teams in the Championship (each of whom finished in the top four), the Baggies have already been linked with one defender who could come in and make them stronger at the back.

Having been linked with a swoop for Blackburn’s Darragh Lenihan, who is out of contract in the summer, this could give Bruce the chance to create a formidable pairing at the back with the Rovers ace and current Baggies centre-half Kyle Bartley.

With two more appearances in the league this season to his name than the West Brom defender, Lenihan has also made more interceptions and tackles along the way, highlighting his talents at the back.

Furthermore, the Irishman has made considerably more crosses (54) throughout this campaign than the West Brom defender (two), showing that he can be an attacking threat as well as a tough opponent at the back.

The Blackburn tank, dubbed a “man mountain” by his manager Tony Mowbray, has also averaged 4.1 clearances per game, which is just above Bartley’s average of four per match.

Taking all this into account, having a £14k-per-week titan like Lenihan in the team next to Bartley could be exactly what Bruce and West Brom need in order to