Alan Pardew admitted that he fears West Bromwich Albion will lose captain Jonny Evans in January, with Manchester City considering returning for the Northern Ireland international.
West Brom turned down offers of £18m and £23m from City for their skipper in the summer, with Albion holding out for £30m.
Arsenal and Leicester were also interested in the veteran central defender, and with City now likely to come back with a bid it appears West Brom are resigned to losing the 29 year-old.
Pardew said: “I’m never confident when you’ve got great players because other clubs want great players so your best players are always vulnerable.
“Jonny Evans is certainly one of them, and he’s our captain. Do I want to lose him? Course not. Do I fear losing him? Course I do.”
Evans has 18 months remaining on his contract at the Hawthorns and is not expected to sign a new one, meaning the Black Country club need to sell now if they are to maximise his value.
But with the prospect of Arsenal also coming back in for the Manchester United youth product, West Brom retain hope that Evans could still raise something close to the £30m that they were holding out for in August.
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