The icing on the cake of a sweet window for West Brom

Albion fans were made to wait but it was absolutely worth it because they have managed to acquire one of the Championship's most prolific marksmen with the extremely late capture of Southampton striker Adam Armstrong.

The 27-year-old has scored 80 career goals in the second tier, including 24 last season for the Saints, who beat the Baggies in the play-offs on their way to securing promotion to the Premier League.

In his early interviews since being appointed for a second spell last month, head coach Tony Mowbray has distanced himself from the work of the club's recruitment team – led by sporting director Andrew Nestor – but there's no doubt that the 61-year-old's influence has led to this deal being completed.

Mowbray first worked with Armstrong at Coventry when the then-teenager was on loan from boyhood club Newcastle.

But it was when they were reunited at Blackburn in 2018 that Armstrong found his shooting boots, going on to bag 44 goals in 86 appearances in back-to-back campaigns before moving to the south coast in 2021.

As for the other activity, the sale of first-choice keeper Alex Palmer to Ipswich raised eyebrows but with just 18 months left on his contract and hot prospect Josh Griffiths waiting in the wings, it made business sense for the club to cash in on an academy product, which means pure profit.

The £5m deal will have also helped fund the purchase of Danish forward Tammer Bany. The 21-year-old is definitely the product of the Bilkul recruitment model.

Nestor and director of football operations Ian Pearce will have done their research over some time on a player with potential whose quality and value will hopefully increase over time, which is the same profile as another recent arrival, Northern Ireland international midfielder Isaac Price.

Cancelling Serbian midfielder Uros Racic's unsuccessful loan also allowed the signing of Bany to happen as it opened up a spot for another player from abroad, while young defender Caleb Taylor returned to League One Wycombe on loan to get some vital minutes under his belt, as the club are confident that they have enough cover in that position.

Overall, it's been a very productive window, with 19-year-old Spurs striker Will Lankshear also recruited on loan, but it's the signing of the Saint that is the icing on the cake.

It could truly prove to be a season-changing signing, as Mowbray looks to maintain the Baggies' place in the play-offs. Hopefully they can experience a memorable day at Wembley in May, just like Armstrong did with his parent club only nine months ago.