Tony Pulis continued the reshaping of his West Brom squad on Saturday with the signing of Jonny Evans from Manchester United in a deal reported to be worth up to £8 million. The Northern Ireland international has penned a four-year contract at the Hawthorns, and could make his debut against Southampton on September 12.
Speaking about his latest addition, Pulis spoke of his happiness at being able to bring the experienced defender to West Brom:
“This is a great signing for the club. Jonny brings a lot of experience and will be a big player for us – he’s a player I’ve been watching for some time and we are delighted to have him.”
THE HISTORY
After being spotted playing for his local side Greenisland FC by Man United as a youngster, Evans eventually joined the Red Devils in 2004 after his family relocated to Manchester, with his younger brother Corry also part of the United youth setup.
He made a handful of appearances for the first-team during pre-season in 2006, although Evans then spent the first half of the year on loan at United’s Belgian feeder club Royal Antwerp, where he made 11 appearances, scoring two goals. The defender then spent the second half of the 2006/07 campaign on loan at Sunderland, and helped the Black Cats to promotion to the Premier League.
Evans made his United debut in the League Cup against Coventry in September 2007, but was then again sent out on loan to Sunderland for the second half of the 2007/08 season, and helped Roy Keane’s side retain their top-flight status.
The Northern Ireland international never properly established himself as a first choice at Old Trafford, with the 2011/12 and 2012/13 seasons perhaps being his most successful, when he racked up 52 league appearances, scoring four goals. In total during his time at Old Trafford, Evans managed 131 appearances.
The 27-year-old defender made his international debut against Spain in September 2006 in a memorable 3-2 victory. He currently has 41 caps to his name, and has scored one goal, against Poland in 2009.
THE PROSPECTS
Given his pedigree as a three-time Premier League winner, it’s expected that Evans will command a regular spot at centre-back for the Baggies. He will primarily be competing against James Chester, Gareth McAuley and Jonas Olsson for a place in the starting XI, with Joleon Lescott now out of the picture following his move to Aston Villa. Craig Dawson is expected to remain at right-back after he started the season as a centre-half.
The main reason why Evans may soon be on the radar of Fantasy managers is his kind price tag of 4.8 in Fantasy Premier League (FPL). His cost has fallen by 0.2 already this season, having failed to feature so far at Old Trafford, and with Dawson (5.0), McAuley (5.0) and Chester (4.9) all more expensive, looks a great route into the Baggies backline. Olsson is cheaper at 4.5, but while he has started the last three matches, it seems unlikely that the Swede will keep his place in Pulis’ XI. Chris Brunt, who has regularly lined up at left-back for the Baggies under Pulis, is listed as a midfielder in FPL.
Looking at last season’s statistics, Evans is only behind Chester for tackles (2.4 to 2.3) per match out of the four leading contenders, while he averaged 1.8 interceptions per game last term, the same number as McAuley, more than Olsson (1.1), but once again, less than Chester, who managed 2.3 per 90 minutes at Hull. Out of the four players, he ranked second for clearances with 5.1 per match, bettered only by McAuley with 6.1.
West Brom have managed to keep clean sheets in two of their last three matches, although their task was made easier on Saturday with Stoke being reduced to nine men early on at the Britannia. Whilst Pulis’ men have allowed 32 goal attempts from inside their own box this season – which is the eighth most in the top flight – you have to factor in clashes with City and Chelsea already, where they conceded six times.
Indeed, with 12 shut-outs registered in 22 matches under the Welshman so far, there’s no doubt the Baggies defensive assets are worth serious consideration for FPL bosses, particularly given their favourable upcoming fixtures (SOT, avl, EVE, cpl, SUN, nor).
Given that McAuley has started every league match when available for Pulis, he certainly looks a secure pick but if, as expected, Evans partners his fellow Irishman in the heart of the Baggies defence against Southampton next time out, his 0.2% ownership figure should steadily rise over the next few months.
