West Bromwich Albion will step up their preparations for the upcoming Championship campaign when they play Woking in a pre-season friendly next week in what will be Valerien Ismael's first game in charge of the club.

The Baggies boss will be hoping to build upon the success that he achieved with Barnsley last season by guiding his new side to an immediate return to the Premier League next year.

Under the guidance of Ismael, Barnsley defied all expectations as they sealed a fifth-place finish in the second-tier standings before suffering a narrow aggregate defeat to Swansea City in the play-offs.

Having already decided to bolster his squad by signing Alex Mowatt earlier this month, it will be intriguing to see whether the Frenchman opts to draft in some more fresh faces between now and the end of the transfer window.

[gmsStartingEleven url="https://givemesport.starting11.co.uk/2019-10-09/"]

Ismael may also have to make a decision regarding the future of one of the club's key players in the coming weeks if recent reports are anything to go by.

According to The Telegraph, Crystal Palace and Newcastle United are both keeping tabs on Kyle Bartley ahead of potential swoops.

The defender's current deal at West Brom is set to expire next year and it is understood that a potential suitor could seal a move if they pay a fee believed to be in the region of £3m this summer.

Palace may be in the market for a central-defender as Gary Cahill and Mamodou Sakho both recently became free-agents following the expiry of their deals at Selhurst Park.

GIVEMESPORT's Joshua Cole says...

Whilst Bartley was unable to prevent the Baggies from suffering relegation to the Championship earlier this year, he still managed to average a respectable WhoScored match rating of 6.77 in the top-flight as he made 30 appearances for the club.

Having featured on 163 occasions in the second-tier during his career, the defender knows exactly what it takes to thrive at this level and thus could prove to be an asset for West Brom next season.

Taking this into consideration, it could be argued that Ismael ought to keep him at The Hawthorns as there is no guarantee that West Brom will be able to draft in a sufficient replacement.

By building a squad around the likes of Bartley and Mowatt, the Baggies boss could potentially lead the club to a great deal of success in the opening months of the 2021/22 campaign.

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