‘The problem is…’ – Tony Brown moots West Brom concern after what he saw v Coventry

Tony Brown believes that the one problem West Brom are facing this season is the lack of a “proper centre-forward” after watching the victory over Coventry City on Friday 29 February.

In the last three fixtures for the Baggies, Andreas Weimann and Jed Wallace have been deployed in a false nine role, with injuries forcing Carlos Corberan to adapt.

Daryl Dike, Josh Maja and Brandon Thomas-Asante are all unavailable due to their respective injuries, leaving West Brom with no natural senior strikers.

Speaking via BBC Radio WM on Friday (1 March), Brown said: “The problem is that we haven’t got a proper centre-forward, a proper striker that can hold play up and relieve pressure.

“If you’ve got a good striker, who has something about him, he can hold the ball up and protect it, which allows other players to come out and get forward. But it just keeps coming back because there is nobody to hold it up front.”

How is Carlos Corberan coping with the striker injuries at West Brom?
With just one loss in their last seven Championship outings, the Baggies are doing extremely well, considering the continuous issues with injuries.

Maja and Dike have made a total of 13 league appearances this season, with both suffering from long-term injuries throughout the campaign. The latter’s most recent setback was devastating, being stretchered off against Ipswich Town after a long-awaited return.

Thomas-Asante has done a brilliant job at leading the line at The Hawthorns, scoring nine goals and assisting twice in 30 appearances so far. However, the 25-year-old has joined the others in the medical room.

This has left Corberan with West Ham United loanee Callum Marshall as the only striker option. Having not started a game for the Baggies yet since joining in January, the manager has chosen a different route.

Much like David Moyes at the London Stadium with Jarrod Bowen, Corberan has chosen to switch Wallace from his natural wing position to centre-forward, but the real impact has come from Tom Fellows and Michael Johnston on the flanks.

In a crisis such as this one, it is important that a club has players who can step up and take charge. Both have been immense in the final third, with the latter netting three times since signing on loan from Celtic in January.

Though it is not an ideal situation for Corberan, West Brom continue to stay positive and pick up crucial points in the bid for Premier League promotion, which looks a very real prospect this season.