Corberan could drop Maja to unleash “unplayable” West Brom gem
Carlos Corberan will know he has his work cut out for him as manager this season, with a number of key first-teamers no longer at his disposal.
The likes of Okay Yokuslu, Conor Townsend and Brandon Thomas-Asante were all mainstays of the Baggies team from last season that triumphantly made it into the Championship playoffs, only for Southampton to get the better of Corberan’s men at the semi-final stage.
None of those faces are in and around the Spanish manager’s camp any more, however, which could lead to the former Huddersfield Town boss rolling the dice more with his Championship team selections to come.
Josh Maja started West Brom’s final pre-season game against Birmingham City as the lone striker option, but after a sobering 4-1 defeat was handed out to the West Midlands club at the hands of their near neighbours to close out a lacklustre pre-season, he could be out of the team for the league opener versus Queens Park Rangers.
Josh Maja’s time at West Brom
Maja might well feel harshly treated by his manager if he is dropped for the trip to Loftus Road, considering he had a disrupted first season in a Baggies strip due to a serious injury setback.
The former Sunderland youngster would only start once in the league, after joining as a free agent, with just 12 appearances notched up in total across an underwhelming first full campaign at the Hawthorns.
Maja did battle back well from his nasty ankle ligament knock, helping himself to a couple of strikes in Premier League 2 action on the road to his recovery, but it looks unlikely that he will be Corberan’s main man up top soon.
It also looks slim that Devante Cole has been purchased to be Thomas-Asante’s golden replacement, having only bagged one second-tier goal across his career to date, which could swing open the door for this forgotten Baggies youngster to start versus Marti Cifuentes’ men today.
Why Faal could start against QPR
The wide-eyed youngster who could be shoved in at the deep-end is Baggies striker Modou Faal, who would have impressed eagle-eyed viewers of League Two football last season.
The Gambian-born ace starred for both Doncaster Rovers and Walsall out on loan away from West Brom, becoming a goal machine in the process and a potential “unplayable” talent for defenders to contain in the future, according to Donny boss Grant McCann.
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