Walsall sign West Brom striker Reyes Cleary on season-long loan

Cleary has made seven first team appearances for the Baggies in all competitions, including an 18-minute cameo from the bench in their 2-1 defeat at Fleetwood Town in the EFL Cup last week.

The 20-year-old signed a new one-year deal at the Hawthorns with the option of a further year in July and heads out on his first EFL loan after his previous campaign was disrupted by injury.

He boasted a remarkable goal scoring record at youth level for Albion - bagging 58 goals in 72 appearances for their under-18s and under-21s combined.

His form attracted reported interest from Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund, as well as Arsenal and Tottenham before he penned his first professional deal at Albion aged 18 in 2022.

Reyes has also been capped twice by England at under-19 level - featuring against Iceland and Turkey last year.

And the youngster also revealed that ex-Walsall loanee Mo Faal played a role in persuading him to join the club.

“I’m excited to come in, get on the pitch and help the club get to where it wants to be,” Cleary said.

“My friend Mo Faal had a good loan spell here so when I had a conversation with him, I made my mind up and I wanted to come straight here.

“It’s good to play Premier League 2 but I need to start doing it against men in the real life of football because that’s the only way I’m going to get better so I can’t wait to get going.”

Boss Mat Sadler added: “I’m pleased to add Reyes to the team. Thanks again to our relationships at West Brom, we have the opportunity to bring Reyes in.

“He’s a player who, rewind 12 months ago, was sought after by every club in the division above after his prolific season in PL2. He’s a lovely kid, a Birmingham lad so he knows the club well and knows the history of the club well.

“He’s desperate to succeed, desperate to get back into what he believes is his place. He’s had a taste for it and now he wants more.

“We’ve got to get him up to speed but in terms of his ability, he’s a very good finisher, very direct, wants to get at people and he gives us a different attacking outlet which is what I talk about all the time, having different weapons in the game to be able to beat teams in different ways and he does that.

“He’s different to what we’ve got so far so I’m looking forward to seeing him play.”