Sky Sports are linking West Bromwich Albion and Blackburn Rovers for a move for Fulham utility man Chris Baird.

Both sides were interested in signing the Northern Ireland international during the summer window and Sky use his lack of first-team football to hint that they could be poised to table an offer for his services. Even with Roy Hodgson’s knowledge of Baird’s capability and Blackburn’s need for defensive cover, it’s a bit of stretch to see Baird leaving before the end of this particular window.

The 29 year-old has made 25 appearances under Martin Jol – the last of which was a match-turning introduction as a half-time replacement for Bryan Ruiz in Saturday’s 5-2 win over Newcastle.