Albion have today signed former Sheffield United defender Kean Bryan on a two-year contract.
- Bryan outlines key attributes following Baggies move
- Kean Bryan in profile
- Gallery: Bryan becomes a Baggie
The 24-year-old made 13 appearances for the Blades in the Premier League last season before leaving Bramall Lane in the summer.
The centre-half strengthens Valérien Ismaël’s defensive options following injuries to Matt Clarke and Dara O’Shea.
And the Baggies boss believes it is important to secure the signature of a defender who has the ideal profile to play in his side.
He said: “Kean has the same profile as a defender as Dara. He is a very aggressive, fast, centre-back, who is good in the build-up, is young, wants to learn, and has experience, so his profile is very good for us.
“The main difference to Dara is that Kean is left-footed and with Matt Clarke also out this was an opportunity for us to sign a player who can also play on the left side of our back three, as it is important to the balance of our team to have left-footed players in left-sided positions.
“Now, we need to build Kean into the squad and into the team. He didn’t have a normal pre-season and we need to manage him. At the same time, we will need him in the games, so we need to find the right balance.”