West Brom player left frustrated with transfer mess – Next few weeks key for future

West Bromwich Albion were on the verge of finalising a £5m transfer for Mikey Johnston, but the deal was abruptly cancelled by Flamengo after late medical and performance concerns emerged.

Now according to Brazilian insider Venê Casagrande, the winger had his flight booked and was set to land in Rio de Janeiro at 5am on Tuesday to sign a four-year contract. His gross salary would have been £1.2 million per year – a significant increase from his current wage at West Brom, understood to be around £650,000 a year.

With everything in place, the decision from Flamengo’s board came at the last minute, and the player was left clearly uncomfortable with how the situation unfolded.

The cancellation followed a decisive meeting between club president Luiz Eduardo Baptista and Flamengo’s medical department, as we previously reported.

 

Internal evaluations concluded that Johnston would only be physically fit to play around 1,800 minutes per year – less than half of the 4,000 minutes considered a minimum for short-term squad contributors at the club.

Based on that assessment, the president personally vetoed the transfer.

The decision came despite a full agreement between Flamengo and West Brom for a permanent deal, including a fixed fee close to £5m plus bonuses.

At this stage, Johnston remains at West Brom, and it remains to be seen whether other suitors will emerge in the summer window.

West Brom released John Swift at the end of last season, one of three senior players alongside Semi Ajayi and Grady Diangana, to leave the club

John Swift says he is excited by what awaits him with his next move as he maintains his fitness levels through the PFA pre-season training camp in Leicestershire this summer. Playmaker Swift left Albion at the end of last season, bringing to a close his three-year stay at The Hawthorns.

The 30-year-old, who made 31 goal contributions in 126 appearances for the club having signed on a free transfer from Reading in the summer of 2022, has plenty of Championship experience from his time at Albion, Reading and Brentford and he has been linked with the likes of Stoke City, Derby County and Portsmouth since becoming unattached.

Whatever awaits in the next chapter of his career Swift – who has joined a number of other free agents at the PFA led training camp at Champneys Springs in Ashby-de-la-Zouch this summer having been recommended it by former Baggies teammate and goalkeeper Joe Wildsmith – is pleased to be keeping himself busy in the meantime.