West Brom have started talks with Birmingham City over the potential transfer of goalkeeper Ben Foster. The technical director of the Midlands club has now confirmed this news.

Ben Foster represented West Brom in the Premier league last season after arriving on a loan deal, but it is thought that the Premier league club are interested in making the move permanent after having seen the former Man Utd goalkeeper impress during his one season at the club. West Brom finished the last season in the 10th position, which is a far cry from the relegation positions they were expected to occupy at the end of the season.

Ben Foster has said on a number of occasions that he would be extremely happy to make the move permanent because he was happy with life at West Brom. Even though West Brom are interested in securing his signature, the technical director of the club Dan Ashworth has confirmed that the club will not be held to ransom. As a result, they will be willing to pursue other targets if they are not able to come to an agreement with their arch rivals Birmingham city, who failed to return to the Premier league after failing in the play-offs last season.

"We've started discussions with Birmingham and we hope we can find a solution that suits them and suits us. If we can't, then no problem - we'll have to move on. But it's down to discussions with them. As with every transfer, the selling club has 'X' in mind and the buying club only value at 'Y' so you hope that you find a tipping point that suits both parties," said the technical director of the Midlands club Dan Ashworth.

Meanwhile, he has also rejected speculation that David Beckham is close to securing a West Ham move.