Baggies ace out to impress

Gabriel Tamas' agent has confirmed that the defender wants to stay at West Brom and force his way into new boss Steve Clarke's plans.

The 28-year-old Romania international struggled for first-team action in the past season with just eight Premier League appearances under Roy Hodgson's leadership and it looked like he would have to leave the Hawthorns this summer. However, Hodgson's departure to take over the England job and the possibility of Jonas Olsson departing the club this close-season has handed Tamas an incentive to stick around. And, his agent revealed that Tamas is now hoping to impress Clarke into handing him regular first-team action next season. He told the Birmingham Mail: "Gab comes back in pre-season and he's in the mix to win a place. "Steve Clarke will make his own opinion and we hope Gabi will have a good chance of playing and being part of that. "Gab loves it in England. He wants to buy a house here and it's up to him now to show Steve Clarke that he is as good as, if not better, than the players already here. "He wants to fight for his place. A new manager brings a whole new set of ideas and plans. "We still don't know what style of football Steve Clarke will want but we hope Gab will be part of his plans."