Forced to observe the soaring start that fellow-promoted comrades Hull City amazingly endured, of which 20 points originated from their first ten fixtures, Tony Mowbray must have been anxiously awaiting the arrival of the January transfer window with restricted enthusiasm. West Bromwich Albion invariably sat within the lower reaches of the table standings, gazing at the stars in the hope they would be the beneficiary of another opportune miracle in similar vein to the Herculean efforts of 2005, so the prospect of tempting A-Grade quality to aid the survival quest at the Hawthorns was dubious even for the most deluded optimist.
Inbound from AS Nancy arrived Marc-Antoine Fortune, a 27-year-old frontman of French-Guiana descent might not have caused any earthquakes in terms of Hollywood fantasy signings, but any fool who were impetuous to classify it as a no-hope transfer would now be deep into their second serving of the metaphorical humble pie.
West Brom failed in their battle to steer away from the black hole of relegation to the second-tier Championship [Hull City also proving that an extraordinary start does not guarantee a safe haven in the division], but Fortune’s nourishing haul of five goals in seventeen starts brought sanguinity and drew in a queue of admirers to secure future employment if he opts to remain in the Premiership. For the objective given to him at the turn of the year, to step forth as a burly force, to withstand the pressure exerted from the challenging centre-backs and to hold the ball up to bring the pressing midfielders into contention, Fortune can leave with his head held proudly high.
Newly-promoted Wolves and Fulham have expressed interest in prolonging his career in England, where the former Utrecht fans’ favourite has revamped his reputation to become a potential summertime bargain.
Marc-Antoine Fortune's statistics from the Premiership 2008-2009 campaign read as 5 goals, 5 assists, 21 shots on target out of a possible 36 (58.3% accuracy), all delivered in 1429 minutes of open play.
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