In light of the devastating Josh Maja injury news, Carlos Corberan has explained what West Brom needs from other players.
The 24-year-old forward has been out for at least two months with an ankle ligament damage sustained in the goalless draw with Bristol City, according to Albion manager Steve Bruce, who was speaking to BirminghamLive on Tuesday (19 September).
He continued by saying that one of the Baggies’ wingers—Matt Phillips, Jed Wallace, Tom Fellows, or Grady Diangana—will have to play as a striker.
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The current imperative, according to Corberan, is to develop the players we already have. Given that we were unable to bring a third striker, we must use individuals who, in the event that Asante is unable to participate, can act as a striker.
Keeping everyone in shape is crucial since the more prepared and fit players you have, the more alternatives you’ll have to compete in the games. Let’s find out who the player is. Even though they are all wingers, Tom Fellows, Jed Wallace, and Matt Phillips can all play in those positions, thus just because they have all played there before does not guarantee that they will all play there again.
In the end, we need a winger who can play as a striker, or a playmaker who can play as a striker – the playmakers are Jeremy Sarmiento and [John] Swift. The wingers are Phillips, Wallace or even Grady Diangana, who can play there. We’re going to need them to play there.
Left short
It was feared by many that West Brom had been left a little bit short in the forward areas when the transfer window closed and those fears have now been realised.
While there are other options that can do a job up front if Brandon Thomas-Asante isn’t available, it’s not exactly the decision Corberan would want to have to make.
It’s also a good job Albion decided to stand firm on their valuation of the 24-year-old after receiving bids from Stoke City towards the end of the transfer window, as they could have been in a really tricky position now.
The Maja news is a serious blow because, although goals haven’t been hard to come by on the whole so far this season, they could soon dry up from other areas.
The hope is that one of the wingers won’t have to play as a forward over the next couple of months, but that could be required when the number of midweek games ramps up.
