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West Bromwich Albion are preparing to step up their interest in Salomon Kalou.

The Baggies are keen to bring in more firepower, preferably in time for next week’s pre-season camp in Austria .

The Lille player has a £2.6million get-out clause which would enable him to move.

Sources close to the player suggest the biggest hurdles would be his salary and the fact that Albion aren’t competing in Europe.

But Steve Clarke’s influence - he worked with Kalou at Chelsea - and last week’s arrival of Nicolas Anelka might aid Albion’s pursuit.

Elsewhere, as revealed by Birmingham Mail on Saturday , Albion will hold further talks with a view to securing Goran Popov for another season.

Dynamo Kyiv revealed they were in discussions with Albion about extending the player’s loan for another season.

Popov made 13 appearances for Albion last season during his one-year loan spell.

Albion and Kyiv did, initially, have a price set for the 28-year-old but the Baggies decided to renegotiate at the end of last season.

It now seems the two clubs are close to agreeing another year-long temporary move.

Popov has hinted that he would like to extend his career at Kyiv for a longer period beyond next year, but would be very willing to return to Albion for another 12 months.