West Bromwich Albion struggled over the summer to find the right players to join them in their push for promotion.
It is clear that they obviously did not find them, as they are floundering in 20th place with one win from their first ten Championship games.
Should West Brom have signed Nacer Chadli?
Forced to make free transfers and cut cheap deals, their total spend for the window came to just £1.21m.
This tightness with finances can be traced back to years of mismanagement and poor decisions, with the deal to sign Nacer Chadli just one of many.
Having brought him in from Tottenham Hotspur on a then club-record fee of £13m, the Belgian still remains their third most expensive arrival to date.
His stint at the Hawthorns was brief and ultimately unsuccessful.
A return of five goals and five assists in his debut season marks a solid return, however, the 2017/18 season was when they needed him most. Injuries and poor form led to just six appearances in all competitions, with just one Premier League goal.
It was a miserable campaign that resulted in relegation, as the Baggies finished rock bottom having scored just 31 in 38 games.
Although one cannot usually be blamed for injuries, the fact he went on to play in all but one of Belgium’s World Cup games after the league campaign left many fans feeling like something wasn’t quite right.
He would exit the Hawthorns following their demotion to the Championship, having picked up £55k-per-week in his first season, and £60k-per-week in his final season.
West Brom are still paying for Tony Pulis’ decision to bring him into the club, one which saw a reliance on their big-money talent to perform.
Chadli now plays his football back in Belgium, having yet to score for KVC Westerlo in his first two games of the season.
He has never quite recaptured his form at Spurs during the 2014/15 season which saw him notch 11 goals and provide five assists.
This is the form West Brom needed to survive, but instead, they got a player seemingly unbothered as the club slumped down the divisions.
