West Bromwich Albion have been a club that have shown a willingness to utilise the young talent available to them, of which they have produced plenty in recent years.
With Carlos Corberan likely to uphold this value, outlined in his continued use of Taylor Gardner-Hickman, it bodes well for the young Baggies in the academy.
Should Jake Livermore be dropped when play resumes?
The former Huddersfield Town head coach will have had a say in the recent decision to hand Harry Whitwell his first professional contract too, who will likely look to the aforementioned star as the one to follow.
He stands as proof that there is a clear pathway for academy players to make the breakthrough into the first team, and now this 17-year-old will look to do exactly that.
It could mark the perfect excuse to ditch the ageing Jake Livermore, in favour of a midfielder who is noted as “exciting” and “energetic” in Lewis Cox’s relaying of the new deal.
The 33-year-old is performing admirably for his age, with a 6.70 average SofaScore rating denoting hardly worrying form, but with an academy that has already produced a number of their current starting squad, they should soon look to dip into it once more as he comes to the twilight of his career.
Academy boss Richard Stevens was the first to praise him in the report, detailing that “For a young lad who has just turned 17, he has shown he has the capability of playing regularly in the PL2 team. This shows how highly we rate Harry…”.
The U23s coach Richard Beale would also note:
“He’s going from strength to strength, Harry. He’s had a fantastic year. He’s already trained in the first team under the new manager, he has had several sessions with the first team this season.”
This exposure to Corberan’s methods will already give him a huge advantage in breaking into the senior squad, whilst his inclusion is indicative of how highly thought of he is at the club despite having only featured 14 times for the under-18s and nine times for the under-21s.
Regardless, the future is clearly bright for this young starlet who appears as the new shining light of the West Brom academy.
