Inside track on Ousmane Diakite's long and winding road to West Brom

The Malian became Albion’s first new signing of the summer last month with head coach Carlos Corberan impressed with his athleticism and “personality with the ball”.

Knee injury woe certainly stuttered the midfielder’s progress at Austria giants Red Bull Salzburg, but the 23-year-old has showed impressive levels of hunger and determination, attributes obvious in his game, to power back and re-ignite his career.

A leading role at unfancied Austrian side TSV Hartberg last season further boosted Diakite’s status as somebody ready for the demands of regular football following earlier strugglers. Hartberg regularly play in front of gates of just 3,000, and sometimes sub-2,000 attendances, yet last season the midfielder played 31 times as his side, managed by ex-Barnsley boss Markus Schopp, finished fifth but were agonizingly beaten on aggregate in a Uefa Conference League play-off by Austria Vienna.

Diakite was out of contact. Hartberg would have liked to keep him, but in swooped the Baggies to land a battling, all-action defensive midfielder.