West Brom have suffered a transfer setback after defensive target Mickael Nade decided to stay with Saint-Etienne, according to Le Proges.
The French outlet reported on 15 July that the centre-back is set to sign a new contract with the French club having “rejected the advances” of the Baggies and turned down a financial offer from The Hawthorns.
Nade had reportedly been disappointed by Saint-Etienne’s initial offer following the expiry of his previous contract, but is now in the process of signing a new deal with the newly promoted Ligue 1 side.
West Brom to look elsewhere after Mickael Nade transfer setback
Centre-backs are high on the transfer target list at The Hawthorns this summer, despite having already signed 25-year-old Norwegian Torbjorn Heggem from IF Brommapojkarna to bolster the squad.
Veteran defender Kyle Bartley has also signed a contract extension to remain at the club for potentially the next two years [club website, 1 June], but there’s still a big question mark over the future of one of his team-mates.
That’s because despite being out of contract on 30 June, Cedric Kipre, unlike Bartley, is yet to sign a new deal, and as such is on the market to negotiate a free transfer of his own.
His failure to appear for pre-season training suggests that a move away from the Baggies is likely for Kipre, and thus bringing in Nade as a free replacement could have been a shrewd move.
Therefore, having missed out on Nade and Kipre seemingly set for the exit door, there’s still plenty of work for Carlos Corberan to do before deciding on his first-choice centre-back partnership next season.
