Albion must get rid of players ahead of January shake-up

And that means some of their 11 summer signings could be sacrificed just five months after arriving at The Hawthorns after failing to make an impact.

Attacking midfielders Silvestre Varela and Sebastien Blanco, defender Jason Davidson and utility man Chris Baird have all been virtual spectators in recent weeks after failing to make an impact on the training ground.

And all four could be made available in January to make room for possible new arrivals – but the Baggies would need to find clubs for the players before being able to reinvest their wages on fresh recruits.

Varela has been blighted by injuries since his arrival from Porto but has not convinced Irvine he is ready to cope with the demands of the Premier League.

However, his season-long loan agreement does not include a clause for a January cancellation, meaning the Baggies would have to find a club willing to take on the final six months before striking a three-way agreement involving Porto.

Blanco and Davidson, who both cost around £1.5m, have failed to impress and both could be offered to clubs as loan options.

And Baird, who could play at left-back against West Ham tomorrow with Sebastien Pocognoli troubled by injury, has been the subject of interest from former club Fulham.

Record £10m signing Brown Ideye has also struggled to make an impact but the Baggies are unlikely to offload the Nigeria international in January with officials reluctant to write off such a large investment.

They still hope Ideye can find form once he adapts to life in England, with his wife and two children finally due to join him next week.

Jonas Olsson is also a possible January target for QPR but Albion are unlikely to sanction a move for the defender to a possible survival rival, and the Sweden international faces up to two months on the sidelines anyway after Achilles surgery.

Irvine has spoken recently of the rush to sign players in the summer after 12 players departed at the end of last season.

But the Scot is also under pressure for his own position after fans turned on him during Saturday's 1-0 defeat against Arsenal – a result that leaves his side with just one win in their last eight games in all competitions.