West Brom have made an impressive start to the new Championship season under Carlos Corberan.
West Brom sit 2nd in the table behind Sunderland as they look to mount another promotion push towards the Premier League. The Baggies are back in action after the international break with an away trip to Fratton Park to lock horns with Portsmouth.
west brom boss corberan watches on
Image courtesy of: JASON CAIRNDUFF/REUTERS.
Corberan’s side made the play-offs in the last campaign after finishing in 5th place. However, they were beaten at the semi-finals stage over two legs by eventual winners Southampton.
The Midlands outfit have since bolstered their ranks with a few fresh faces such as Gianluca Frabotta, Ousmana Diakite and Devante Cole, whilst Mikey Johnston’s loan from Celtic has been made permanent. They also waved goodbye to the likes of Brandon Thomas-Asante, Conor Townsend and Okay Yokuslu.
Here is a look at West Brom’s strongest starting XI following the end of the transfer window…
West Brom, Winger plays: West Brom’s strongest starting XI after the summer transfer window
Whose stadium is this?Sheffield Wednesday
Sheffield United
Birmingham City
Watford
West Brom’s strongest starting XI
(4-2-3-1)
Palmer; Furlong, Ajayi, Bartley, Frabotta; Molomby, Mowatt; Fellows, Swift, Johnston; Maja
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Alex Palmer remains West Brom’s number one but faces strong competition from new recruit Joe Wildsmith, who has joined following his exit from Derby County.
In defence, Darnell Furlong, Semi Ajayi and Kyle Bartley are three solid options for the Baggies to pick from and they all have valuable experience. Summer signing Frabotta has arrived to fill the void left by Townsend’s exit to top flight new boys Ipswich Town.
Jayson Molomby and Alex Mowatt are two useful players for Corberan to call upon and can both be trusted in the middle of the park.
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Tom Fellows has a very bright future ahead of him in the game and West Brom will be pleased that they were able to keep hold of him. He can cause big problems to opponents on the right wing.
Down the middle, John Swift is a proven performer and can create moments of magic. Meanwhile, left winger Johnstone was a big hit during the second-half of last term on loan from Celtic and re-signing him is a big statement of intent.
Striker Maja scored a hat-trick on the opening day and is in decent form. He has enjoyed a new lease of life under Corberan.
West Brom, Winger plays: West Brom’s strongest starting XI after the summer transfer window
Image courtesy of: ANDREW BOYERS/REUTERS.
The players left out
Wildsmith will be ready to play if Palmer is injured or is dropped.
New additions such as Paddy McNair, Torbjørn Heggem, Callum Styles and Diakite provide depth to the squad, as does Uros Racic.
Lewis Dobbin and Jed Wallace will fancy their chances of getting into the starting XI.
Cole, who left Barnsley in late June, and Karlan Grant will push Maja for his place.
West Brom’s upcoming opponents Portsmouth haven’t won yet this term following their promotion.
