West Brom will regret signing Kenneth Zohore from Cardiff City

Kenneth Zohore was one of Cardiff City’s best players before moving to West Bromwich Albion.

The Danish striker spent four seasons at Cardiff City Stadium, including a season on loan before signing a permanent deal. This included a year in the Premier League, with his goals helping Neil Warnock’s side win promotion to the top flight in 2017.

He scored nine times during the promotion year, while adding just one Premier League goal during the season which saw the Bluebirds relegated at the first time of asking. Despite suffering injuries and scoring goals in the top flight, Zohore attracted attention from clubs that summer.

West Brom signed Zohore for £8 million in the summer of 2019

After Cardiff were relegated from the Premier League, Zohore joined Championship side West Brom in July 2019. The deal is said to be for a transfer fee of £8 million and is the third highest transfer fee highest the club has ever received. a player.

Although that fee seemed high, West Brom signed the striker Warnock had requested for £30 million from Everton two years previously. With just one year left on the four-year contract he signed in 2016, the Bluebirds had to sell the 25-year-old that summer or risk losing him in a transfer free one year later.

Zohore’s statistics for Cardiff were not spectacular. 24 goals and 11 assists in 101 matches isn’t very impressive, but his overall play was why he was so highly regarded. He excelled as a target man, with his strength, speed and power making him a fantastic option up front. He held the ball well, often allowing wingers Junior Hoilett and Nathaniel Mendez-Laing to get more into the game.

It seemed like a good amount of money for the Bluebirds, but they didn’t spend it well. They bought replacements in Robert Glatzel and Isaac Vassell, neither of whom impressed during their time at the Cardiff City Stadium.

This does not mean, however, that the Baggies have successfully completed the transfer on their side.

He struggled for West Brom before leaving the club

It would be difficult to characterize Zohore’s time at West Brom as anything other than an abject failure. He joined in on such a promise for an £8 million deal, but failed to repay even that fee with his performances.

Injuries ravaged his first year at the Hawthorns. A calf problem limited him to just 17 league appearances, with his goal return of just three strikes failing to impress. The Baggies won promotion to the Premier League that season, but Zohore’s performances only earned him a loan spell in the second tier with Millwall.

He returned to the club the following season, but made only two appearances for the Baggies. This was followed by another disappointing loan spell at Danish Superliga club Odense, before the club terminated his contract in January 2023 and cut their losses on the big-money signing.

During his four years at the Hawthorns, Zohore only made 23 appearances in all competitions. His five goals in total are an appalling return for a striker who cost £8 million, an average of £1.6 million per goal scored. Although injuries blighted the start of his career at the club, he failed to impress when given a chance on the pitch and struggled to get into his manager’s good books.

Zohore is now a free agent and looking for a club. At 30, he could still have years of football ahead of him. It’s clear that his move to West Brom was not the right move for the striker, and he never managed to impress the Baggies like he did during his four years at Cardiff.

West Brom must still feel the effects of such a huge transfer fee. Zohore is still their 11th biggest signing of all time, and spending that much money on a player for him to contribute next to nothing must take a toll on the Baggies.