Carlos Corberan’s bare bones West Brom team lost at the weekend to Sunderland, the Baggies putting in a valiant effort regardless at the Stadium of Light to only lose 2-1 with a number of first-teamers missing.
Matt Phillips and Jed Wallace were both ruled out prior to the Sunderland clash, whilst the injury issues just kept piling up during the game itself with Josh Maja coming off with a knock in the first 45 minutes.
It’s a seriously worrying situation at the Hawthorns, particularly in attack with injury-prone striker Daryl Dike also still out which leaves Brandon Thomas-Asante as the only striker option fit for the game at Rotherham United tomorrow evening.
Therefore, Corberan could be forced into thinking outside the box this January as to who he can rely on up top to fix this ever-increasing list of cuts and bruises.
The Spanish boss could even recall Karlan Grant from his loan spell at Cardiff City in the upcoming transfer window if needs be, the current Bluebirds man has been prolific and reliable in attack at the Hawthorns but fell down the Baggies’ pecking order after losing his way.
Karlan Grant’s statistics at West Brom
Grant has been a talismanic figure for the Baggies in the past, notably during the 2021-22 Championship season where the 26-year-old was key.
The former Huddersfield Town attacker scored 18 times in that campaign for West Brom, switching between playing as right winger and as a centre forward depending on the game.
Karlan Grant’s West Brom record | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Season | Games Played | Goals | Assists |
22-23 season | 35 | 5 | 1 |
21-22 season | 44 | 18 | 6 |
20-21 season | 21 | 1 | 0 |
That was a one-off for Grant, however, who has found it hard ever since to replicate that free-flowing vein of form.
From that golden season onwards, the out-of-form forward has only managed to find the back of the net another five times for the Baggies.
This resulted in Corberan loaning out his underwhelming attacker in the summer, preferring to start the likes of Thomas-Asante over the stuttering 26-year-old.
Yet, Grant could be now be a perfect temporary fix for the issues troubling West Brom if recalled from his loan.
Former Sheffield Wednesday player and current football pundit Carlton Palmer was confused by the decision to offload Grant in the summer, stating that the ex Terriers man’s “versatility” was a major plus for the Baggies and letting him leave temporarily could “come back to bite them.”
Corberan would have to put his arm around Grant’s shoulder on his potential return however, the 26-year-old is still yet to rediscover his lethal edge in front of goal even when featuring for Cardiff.
Karlan Grant’s statistics at Cardiff
Grant has been an important figure for Erol Bulut’s Bluebirds, but his goal output hasn’t been frequent enough to be a star man in attack.
The 26-year-old has two goals and three assists from 20 appearances out in Wales, scoring a vital late equaliser last month away at Preston North End for his short-term employers.
Predominantly playing as a left winger under Bulut, the Turkish head coach has praised his new recruit for “working hard” even when the goals aren’t naturally flowing.
This glowing assessment by the Cardiff manager could be enough for Corberan to recall his versatile reserve forward, who needs individuals at West Brom to possess similar levels of grit and determination in order to sustain a promotion push.
West Brom’s lineup for their game versus Rotherham United tomorrow night will be an interesting one to attempt a prediction for, Corberan scrambling to see who he can rely on for the trip to the Millers as his squad becomes more and more threadbare.
