West Brom midfielder Sam Field signs one-year contract extension
Lifelong Albion fan Sam Field has signed a one-year extension to his Baggies contract.
The 19-year-old is now contracted until the summer of 2021 after agreeing a new deal with improved wages.
Field, who has been at the club since the age of seven, featured in the opening two games of the season against Bournemouth and Burnley.
A childhood Albion fan who has 12 first team appearances in total, he said: “It's always an honour to play for West Brom and to get another year is just fantastic. The more years I can spend here the better. I'm dead chuffed!”
Albion have lost talented youngsters like Izzy Brown, Jerome Sinclair and Yan Dhanda to big clubs in the past and are currently staving off interest in 18-year-old Tyler Roberts, who is out of contract at the end of this season.
Hagley-born Field, who has played for England’s under-20s this season, is hotly tipped for a bright future in the game and Baggies chairman John Williams believes this new deal will protect the club from losing him.
"Sam is one of our best young prospects and another player of real potential to emerge from the academy,” said Williams. "It's the right contract at the right time to protect his future development of the player and the club."
Head coach Tony Pulis is also a huge fan of the defensive midfielder, and has him in his future plans for the squad.
This summer he angered the FA by stopping Field from going to the under-19 European Championships with England in order to take him on his pre-season training camp in Austria – a tournament England went on to win.
Pulis also held Field back from going out on loan this season because he wanted him in the first team squad.
"We think Sam has tremendous potential and at the same time a wonderful attitude to progress his career," said Pulis.
The Baggies sent 13 youngsters out on loan in total but Field was closest to the first team and was kept behind, despite several Championship clubs showing an interest in a temporary deal.
However, Field hasn’t played a single minute of first team football since the opening two games and is expected to be sent out on loan in January.
Albion haven’t won a league game since Field was replaced in the line-up by Paris Saint-Germain loanee Grzegorz Krychowiak.
