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Published Oct 16, 2026, 8:15 AM GMT+1
Daniel is an experienced football writer and editor with more than a decade of experience covering the professional game, specialising in the Championship, Football League and Scottish football, alongside in-depth coverage of Norwich City, Celtic and Rangers.
A journalist since 2015, Daniel began his career writing for Fresh Press before progressing into a full-time writing and editing role, producing club-focused coverage for Read Norwich, Read Celtic, Read Liverpool and Read Arsenal. He later spent almost a year with Liverpool-based outlet Anfield Watch, where his work included conducting and transcribing interviews with figures including Liverpool goalkeeping coach John Achterberg, former Wycombe striker Adebayo Akinfenwa and journalist Fabrizio Romano.
Daniel has worked with Snack Media (now Valnet) since 2021, contributing to Football FanCast as both a writer and editor. His work focuses particularly on player analysis, transfer insight and original football features, combining detailed knowledge of the game with research-driven assessment of players, clubs and potential moves.
His specialist knowledge of Norwich City and the Football League has also seen him contribute to BBC Norfolk and assist DAZN with research for commentary broadcasts. As a Norwich City season-ticket holder, Daniel brings a level of first-hand knowledge of the club and its players that complements his wider expertise across the Championship and EFL. His Norwich coverage has also featured in publications including the Coventry Telegraph and Liverpool Echo.
Alongside his Football League expertise, Daniel has covered Celtic and Rangers extensively, developing a strong understanding of Scottish football. His work gives readers informed transfer assessment, detailed player analysis and authoritative insight into clubs and competitions he has spent years following and reporting on.
West Bromwich Albion and Birmingham City both picked up wins in the Championship this week after they faced each other at The Hawthorns last weekend.
The Blues won 1-0 against their Midlands rivals thanks to a penalty from August Priske, before they went on to beat Preston North End 4-0 at St. Andrew's.
Meanwhile, James Morrison's men picked up a terrific 2-1 win away at Wrexham. They came from 1-0 down to win 2-1 through goals from Isaac Price and Aune Heggebo.
Both teams are in the promotion race, but they still have players within their squads who are not up to the level. One player who once fell into that bracket for both clubs was Oliver Burke.
How Oliver Burke flopped at West Brom and Birmingham City
The Scotland international joined the Baggies from RB Leipzig in 2017 for a fee of £15m and he scored one goal in 24 matches before being sold to Sheffield United in 2020.
Burke, who scored a hat-trick in the Bundesliga for Union Berlin last season, never got going at The Hawthorns and went out on loan to the likes of Alaves and Celtic before being let go.
After his time with West Brom, the Scottish attacker joined Birmingham on loan from Werder Bremen in the 2023/24 Championship season, after he signed for the Bundesliga club from Sheffield United in 2022.
|
Appearances |
21 |
|
xG |
0.55 |
|
Goals |
|
|
Key passes per game |
0.4 |
|
Big chances created |
1 |
|
xA |
0.35 |
|
Assists |
Burke failed to deliver a single goal contribution in 21 appearances in the second tier for the Blues in that season, which meant that they did not pursue a permanent deal for his signature.
Action Images/Andrew CouldridgeUltimately, the 29-year-old striker, who can play centrally or out wide, flopped at Birmingham and West Brom because he was unable to score or create goals on a consistent basis for either club.
West Brom and Birmingham have found their new Oliver Burke
Now, in the present day, the two clubs both have underperforming strikers who could go on to be remembered as poorly as Burke by the end of their respective careers there.
In February 2025, West Brom paid a fee of £3.3m to sign Tammer Bany from Randers to bolster their options at the top end of the pitch in the second half of the 2024/25 campaign.
18 months on from his move to The Hawthorns, the Jordan international has failed to score or assist any goals in nine appearances for the first-team.
He did miss 23 matches with a thigh injury last season, in his defence, but the striker has not done enough either side of that injury to justify the money spent on him.
Bany has played 116 minutes of competitive football since joining for £3.3m last year. That means that he has cost the club £28,448 per minute played on the pitch.
Meanwhile, Birmingham City are in a similar position with one of their big-money striker signings, after snapping up Luis Vazquez from Anderlecht for £3m in the summer.
|
Appearances |
8 |
|
Starts |
1 |
|
xG |
1.34 |
|
Goals |
|
|
Key passes per game |
0.3 |
|
Big chances created |
|
|
Assists |
The Argentine striker is yet to get off the mark in the Championship for the Blues since his move to St. Andrew's earlier this year, and has not scored any goals in ten appearances in all competitions.
Vazquez's worst moment in a Birmingham shirt so far came when he missed the target with a completely open goal in front of him from close range against Derby County in September.
The 25-year-old marksman has not shown the quality or consistency required to be an effective Championship forward, yet, and currently looks like a flop for £3m.
Bany, meanwhile, has been an unused substitute for the last four Championship matches for the Baggies and looks like an even worse signing than Vazquez.
Birmingham and West Brom have spent £6.3m on Vazquez and Bany in an effort to bolster their attacks in the Championship, and it looks like that £6.3m has gone down the drain so far.
Neither of them have registered a single competitive goal in all competitions and are both well on their way to going down as each club's new version of Oliver Burke.
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