West Brom have confirmed they have turned down a compensation offer from Chelsea for academy product Isaiah Brown.
The
16-year-old midfielder has been tracked by several Premier League clubs
since making his first-team debut against Wigan last season, and is now
on the verge of a move to Stamford Bridge.
The Baggies are due
at least £209,000 compensation under Elite Player Performance Plan rules
but the club’s sporting and technical director Richard Garlick insist
they deserve more.
"We are disappointed by Chelsea’s offer," he told the club’s official website.
"We
have invested a lot of time and money in Isaiah’s development as a
player. As one of our most exciting academy products in recent years, we
had hoped to bring him through into our first team.
"But Chelsea have forced our hands and we are more than prepared for the matter to be decided by a tribunal if needs be.
"More
importantly, it makes you question why these young players are joining
bigger clubs when they are likely to gain more first-team opportunities
in the Barclays Premier League at clubs similar to us."
Brown has
won three England Under-17s caps and two for the Under-16s, scoring his
first goal in a 4-3 friendly defeat to Germany in February.
Two
months later he became the second youngest-ever Premier League player
when he came on as a late substitute against Wigan, aged 16 years and
117 days.
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