Lions striker back on Albion's radar

12:00pm Tuesday 18th December 2012 in Sport By Andy Naylor

Chris Wood, right, has scored eight in 17 games for Millwall Chris Wood, right, has scored eight in 17 games for Millwall

Chris Wood is back on Albion’s radar as they weigh up their striker options for January.

Boss Gus Poyet has refused to rule out a move for the Kiwi target man, who spearheads the Millwall attack against the Seagulls at The Amex tonight.

Wood has scored eight goals in 17 games on loan to Millwall from West Brom this season.

His loan ends on January 1 and Millwall have already tabled a £1 million plus bid to sign him permanently.

They face competition from Championship rivals Huddersfield and Leicester, while Albion could also enter the race.

Poyet believes Wood, 21, has improved since helping the Seagulls win League One two seasons ago with eight goals in 29 outings and is not surprised by his prolific stint with the Lions.

Poyet told The Argus: “We had him here when he was very young and we helped each other. He helped us a lot with his power and his goals. I think we did our job as well to put him in shape, because he was still growing up.

“I think he is a much better player now. He is mature, he has learnt a lot about the game in England. He is playing week in week out, so he’s much better. I’m not surprised at all.

“There has been plenty of talk and he is a player we know very well, which would make it very easy to make a decision one way or the other.

“At the moment he is with Millwall, so I don’t want to make a mess before the game just in case they take it the wrong way, so we’ll see.”

Full story plus two-page preview of tonight's game against Millwall in The Argus today

Comments(42)

VegasSeagull says...
12:29pm Tue 18 Dec 12

If we were to go for him I guess a price tag of 2 million would be about right, that is not, 'spending big.' If he is a genuine target for us then there has to be another.

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CAKEBEARD says...
12:37pm Tue 18 Dec 12

I always thought he was a great prospect and never understood why we didn't keep him...he would be ideal and a great long term investment for Tony bearing in mind his age.

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rusty dave says...
12:39pm Tue 18 Dec 12

Ricky Lambert !!!!!!

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Neillo says...
12:47pm Tue 18 Dec 12

“At the moment he is with Millwall, so I don’t want to make a mess before the game just in case they take it the wrong way, so we’ll see.”

Bit late for that now.

Can't control his mouth can he...

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VegasSeagull says...
12:55pm Tue 18 Dec 12

Neillo wrote:
“At the moment he is with Millwall, so I don’t want to make a mess before the game just in case they take it the wrong way, so we’ll see.” Bit late for that now. Can't control his mouth can he...
Sir Alex told us that Man City were favs to win their derby match, then his team went out and won it. Mind games, gotta love those mind games.

'I don't want to upset them by saying too much, ooops, oh I am so sorry.'

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Far gull says...
1:22pm Tue 18 Dec 12

Sure someone else is radar ,this just mind games.

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Gibseagull says...
1:22pm Tue 18 Dec 12

If Leicester and Huddersfield are in for him we won't stand a chance, they'll just out-bid us. This is going to be the problem with trying for strikers who have proved they can do it at this level, there'll always be someone with more money than us in the mix.

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VegasSeagull says...
1:27pm Tue 18 Dec 12

Gibseagull wrote:
If Leicester and Huddersfield are in for him we won't stand a chance, they'll just out-bid us. This is going to be the problem with trying for strikers who have proved they can do it at this level, there'll always be someone with more money than us in the mix.
Don't forget about the teams at or near the bottom of the prem division, for 4 million they might take a punt on the lad.

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smegbuster says...
1:46pm Tue 18 Dec 12

Neillo wrote:
“At the moment he is with Millwall, so I don’t want to make a mess before the game just in case they take it the wrong way, so we’ll see.” Bit late for that now. Can't control his mouth can he...
Actually, if you listen to the interview on Seagulls Player, Gus was directly asked whether he is preparing to bid for Chris Wood. Gus said he didn't want to say one way or the other, then went on to clarify with the above quote. The problem is when reporters decide to read something into a comment (as per the headline) and/or take a quote out of context, that doesn't help a manager who IS trying to "control his mouth" as you put it.

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Claude Back says...
1:48pm Tue 18 Dec 12

I really hope Gus is not serious. Wood is just not good enough in my opinion. He hasn't improved that much, it's just that he likes the Millwall style of play. He wasn't any good for us last time and won't be again if he came here. would be a waste of money. Such talk makes me very apprehensive if this is the quality of player Gus is after.I reckon this is all smoke and mirrors from Gus...hopefully.

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VegasSeagull says...
2:00pm Tue 18 Dec 12

Claude Back wrote:
I really hope Gus is not serious. Wood is just not good enough in my opinion. He hasn't improved that much, it's just that he likes the Millwall style of play. He wasn't any good for us last time and won't be again if he came here. would be a waste of money. Such talk makes me very apprehensive if this is the quality of player Gus is after.I reckon this is all smoke and mirrors from Gus...hopefully.
Gus is ready to spend big, this guy is 2 million and that's not big.

I would stake a decent sized pile of chips on the, 'spend big,' quote to mean big wages and not big purchase price.

There are several prem players that just can't get much playing time, some young and some not so young, that is where I would be looking.

I haven't got a clue as to who we might get but I feel pretty sure that the two being mentioned right now are not the ones.
If Wood does become a real target then others have to come too.

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Hovite says...
2:09pm Tue 18 Dec 12

Nicely put smegbuster, the seagull player is a good insight to the truth.

I would recommend that everyone listen to all video press conferences before commenting on a printed one line statement.

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Alan G Skinner says...
2:33pm Tue 18 Dec 12

We could pontificate about this for the entire transfer window; lets just wait and see what happens. Lets get behind the players who are already here, there are thousands of tickets still available on line and by phone for Millwall tonight and I fancy us for a win tonight and a convincing win at that!!

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GosportGull says...
2:51pm Tue 18 Dec 12

I really hope that Gus is not serious about Woods ... he was ok but i really dn't think he will add anything more than what we already have. I would rate CMS and Hoskins over him,sorry.... But Ricky Lambert ? Now that would be a nice addition but i don't think we will get a sniff there ...
I would like to see a young Premiership squad player with ability and talent to come in that we wont have to pay the world for but has potential for the future...
We still have Hoskins and CMS ..it wasnt that long ago that CMS was on fire , he just needs a couple of goals and he will be away again..
I think another centre half is more important as we dont have the cover at the standard required at the moment. GG

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the taffster says...
2:51pm Tue 18 Dec 12

if chris wood was good would wba let him go?.he isnt the answer.kenwynne jones,ricky lambert.maybe c.austin.you want a striker whos played in the p,ship.

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Claude Back says...
3:01pm Tue 18 Dec 12

I heard a whisper that we are after Darren Bent on loan. He is going to leave Villa in January as Lambert wants him out to fund other transfers despite what noises he is making now. That would be excellent. If only.

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CanfieldRob says...
3:08pm Tue 18 Dec 12

As I said last week, Gus could do a lot worse than look at Tom Pope at Port Vale. His scoring record is excellent and I reckon Mickey Adams is expecting to have several clubs after him in the transfer window.

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sussexram40 says...
3:10pm Tue 18 Dec 12

Bent would add a new dimension. But it's got to be Charlie Austin. I can see him slotting in very nicely upfront and he will relish the chance to move to a club with a sniff of promotion.

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Hoarder12345444 says...
3:12pm Tue 18 Dec 12

Claude Back wrote:
I heard a whisper that we are after Darren Bent on loan. He is going to leave Villa in January as Lambert wants him out to fund other transfers despite what noises he is making now. That would be excellent. If only.
I doubt he would drop down a league when he could wak into most premier league sides and score goals, and get premier league wages.

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Claude Back says...
3:14pm Tue 18 Dec 12

sussexram40 wrote:
Bent would add a new dimension. But it's got to be Charlie Austin. I can see him slotting in very nicely upfront and he will relish the chance to move to a club with a sniff of promotion.
Sorry but the Burnley board have said they definitely won't be selling Austin in January. Do they mean it?

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Claude Back says...
3:16pm Tue 18 Dec 12

Hoarder12345444 wrote:
Claude Back wrote:
I heard a whisper that we are after Darren Bent on loan. He is going to leave Villa in January as Lambert wants him out to fund other transfers despite what noises he is making now. That would be excellent. If only.
I doubt he would drop down a league when he could wak into most premier league sides and score goals, and get premier league wages.
That's what I thought initially but look at Bridge and Kuz.

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JUPILER says...
3:32pm Tue 18 Dec 12

CanfieldRob wrote:
As I said last week, Gus could do a lot worse than look at Tom Pope at Port Vale. His scoring record is excellent and I reckon Mickey Adams is expecting to have several clubs after him in the transfer window.
Nice one,think Micky Adams owes us one.This lad is on fire skinny tall and fast.

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bruce beckett says...
3:37pm Tue 18 Dec 12

What's the betting Wood scores against us again tonight? Our former strikers seem to be making a habit of coming back to haunt us.

You have to wonder how good a judge of a striker Gus really is, having let Murray go and then decide not to pursue Wood when his loan spell ended. Not to mention spending big on CMS, who is not quite the clinical finisher we hoped he would be.

Anyway, hope CMS and whoever partners him tonight (Hoskins or Barnes?) tucks away a chance or two because if he we want to stay in play-off contention, we really need the three points. My money is on a 1-1 draw.

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tinker111 says...
3:38pm Tue 18 Dec 12

WHY NOT GOOD ENOUGH

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pjwilk says...
3:42pm Tue 18 Dec 12

Who would want to be in Gus,s shoes if he spends big and the player lets us down he is in trouble.Not a good position to be in but i would like to think that Gus and his scouting team would know the proven player we need,so good luck Gus.

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LACHANCE says...
3:48pm Tue 18 Dec 12

pjwilk wrote:
Who would want to be in Gus,s shoes if he spends big and the player lets us down he is in trouble.Not a good position to be in but i would like to think that Gus and his scouting team would know the proven player we need,so good luck Gus.
Good Post

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sussexram40 says...
3:53pm Tue 18 Dec 12

There's a lot of mind games in all this. Managers and clubs keep things close to their chests for negotiating reasons. The fact that GP has spoken about Wood will be a bluff. It means he isn't interested in him. The man GP wants he wont mention as that would put the price up if the other club knew BHA wanted ther man. So you play it cool. Re: Austin, Burnley have said he is not for sale. That means he is for sale and it is Burnleys way of forcing clubs to come in with bigger offers. Analysing all this, I have to conclude that Austin is the man GP wants and Burnley are prepared to sell him if the price is right. The big question is which 2 players will be sold by GP to finance the new acqusition.

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Old Scrote of the Amex says...
4:00pm Tue 18 Dec 12

bruce beckett wrote:
What's the betting Wood scores against us again tonight? Our former strikers seem to be making a habit of coming back to haunt us.

You have to wonder how good a judge of a striker Gus really is, having let Murray go and then decide not to pursue Wood when his loan spell ended. Not to mention spending big on CMS, who is not quite the clinical finisher we hoped he would be.

Anyway, hope CMS and whoever partners him tonight (Hoskins or Barnes?) tucks away a chance or two because if he we want to stay in play-off contention, we really need the three points. My money is on a 1-1 draw.
He's played against us a couple of times (Brum, Brizzle C - I think) and done nothing. Which means he'll probably get a hat-trick!

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bruce beckett says...
4:12pm Tue 18 Dec 12

He's played against us a couple of times (Brum, Brizzle C - I think) and done nothing. Which means he'll probably get a hat-trick!

Old Scrote. He scored against us when we won 2-1 at The Den in September.

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Old Scrote of the Amex says...
4:27pm Tue 18 Dec 12

bruce beckett wrote:
He's played against us a couple of times (Brum, Brizzle C - I think) and done nothing. Which means he'll probably get a hat-trick!

Old Scrote. He scored against us when we won 2-1 at The Den in September.
Which made no difference to the result, so nothing of note :-)

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pjwilk says...
4:38pm Tue 18 Dec 12

If were going for Wood,lets go for their best player Trotter as well.Be very wary tonight and mark Trotter well.

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SMF20 says...
4:55pm Tue 18 Dec 12

pjwilk wrote:
If were going for Wood,lets go for their best player Trotter as well.Be very wary tonight and mark Trotter well.
I'm with you here my friend. Trotter was immense for them at the Amex last season. We just could not handle him... He is someone I'd very much like to see in an Albion shirt. I think we ales need to keep really close on Keogh as well. He is not the biggest, fastest, strongest or most skillful but is football brain and positional play is up there with the best in the championship. Keep these 2 quiet and I think the 3 points will be ours. Really looking forward to the match tonight. Roll on kick off. Uta

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Ringmer Rich says...
5:06pm Tue 18 Dec 12

Trotter maybe, Wood no.

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Godstone Gull says...
5:14pm Tue 18 Dec 12

sussexram40 wrote:
There's a lot of mind games in all this. Managers and clubs keep things close to their chests for negotiating reasons. The fact that GP has spoken about Wood will be a bluff. It means he isn't interested in him. The man GP wants he wont mention as that would put the price up if the other club knew BHA wanted ther man. So you play it cool. Re: Austin, Burnley have said he is not for sale. That means he is for sale and it is Burnleys way of forcing clubs to come in with bigger offers. Analysing all this, I have to conclude that Austin is the man GP wants and Burnley are prepared to sell him if the price is right. The big question is which 2 players will be sold by GP to finance the new acqusition.
I wonder what its like going through life thinking everything is a conspiracy and everyone means the opposite from what they say. Anyway I think you’re a great bloke sussexram40 and very knowledgeable

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fairweathersupporter says...
5:15pm Tue 18 Dec 12

Hovite wrote:
Nicely put smegbuster, the seagull player is a good insight to the truth.

I would recommend that everyone listen to all video press conferences before commenting on a printed one line statement.
Seconded. My aren't we all grown up. It's bound to annoy someone...

Fancy us tonight. Gully's third law of irony... Mention new strikers and attacking options and Barnes (or Hoskins) will score a hat trick (one off his knee, one off his back and one off his a**e!). Then it'll all be okay again and we won't need to spend any money...

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Claude Back says...
5:25pm Tue 18 Dec 12

Godstone Gull wrote:
sussexram40 wrote:
There's a lot of mind games in all this. Managers and clubs keep things close to their chests for negotiating reasons. The fact that GP has spoken about Wood will be a bluff. It means he isn't interested in him. The man GP wants he wont mention as that would put the price up if the other club knew BHA wanted ther man. So you play it cool. Re: Austin, Burnley have said he is not for sale. That means he is for sale and it is Burnleys way of forcing clubs to come in with bigger offers. Analysing all this, I have to conclude that Austin is the man GP wants and Burnley are prepared to sell him if the price is right. The big question is which 2 players will be sold by GP to finance the new acqusition.
I wonder what its like going through life thinking everything is a conspiracy and everyone means the opposite from what they say. Anyway I think you’re a great bloke sussexram40 and very knowledgeable
Nice use of sarcasm.

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Far gull says...
5:26pm Tue 18 Dec 12

A game with goals tonight please, preferably more to us but not another draw please. On poss transfers think more value abroad still especially in spain. 4 million for austin after one half decent season ridiculous. Cms could get luckier or hoskins, loan ,loan please gus and pay good wages no point in putting us financial in hock in jan.Always better value in summer unless you have a michu up your sleeve.

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Hovite says...
5:45pm Tue 18 Dec 12

fairweathersupporter wrote:
Hovite wrote:
Nicely put smegbuster, the seagull player is a good insight to the truth.

I would recommend that everyone listen to all video press conferences before commenting on a printed one line statement.
Seconded. My aren't we all grown up. It's bound to annoy someone...

Fancy us tonight. Gully's third law of irony... Mention new strikers and attacking options and Barnes (or Hoskins) will score a hat trick (one off his knee, one off his back and one off his a**e!). Then it'll all be okay again and we won't need to spend any money...
A win would be welcome fws, not for the promotion push, but for this board. p.s. good posting yesterday I am certain it was appreciated.

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sussexram40 says...
6:05pm Tue 18 Dec 12

Looking forward to the game tonight. Tiem to put the speculation on hold and get behind the lads. I'm hoping for a narrow victory, 1-0 or 2-1, but a little piece of my mind is fearing another 0-0 draw. I'm putting that little piece of my mind out of my thoughts. UTA!

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VegasSeagull says...
6:26pm Tue 18 Dec 12

Doesn't there HAVE to be a time when it all gels for us, maybe tonight's the night.

We seem to have shown everyone that we know how not to lose and indeed how to fight back, it's time we showed we can take the lead and keep it.

I am not worried about our recent form, yep chances not taken but the important thing is that we are creating chances.
If the day comes when we create nothing, that is when I will start to worry.

In all honesty, if can score first tonight then I fancy a good result. Just like Forest they will come to play, no bus parking.
.

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sussexram40 says...
6:34pm Tue 18 Dec 12

The worrying stats are that:
1. We are the only club without a home Championship victory against a top-half of the table side. (Millwall are above us).

2. Championship games involving the Albion have generated fewer goals than games involving any other club in the league - just 50.

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Neillo says...
10:19pm Tue 18 Dec 12

GP's '' mind games '' worked well....

Anyone changed their minds about wanting Wood now ?

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