After an off-day versus Southampton, this regular West Brom star could be dropped for the Ipswich game at the Hawthorns.
West Bromwich Albion will face off against Ipswich Town hoping they can unsettle the Championship entertainers on home soil, Baggies boss Carlos Corberan eager to see a response from his players after narrowly losing 2-1 to Southampton last time out.
Corberan’s men weren’t resoundingly taken apart by Russell Martin’s Saints by any means and were unlucky to lose on the South Coast, the Baggies bettering Southampton in the shots department with West Brom notching up 14 shots in total but the West Midlanders ultimately came away empty-handed despite their best efforts.
This time around, Brandon Thomas-Asante could be sacrificed for a fresh pair of legs up top after a toothless performance at St Mary’s, as could Matt Phillips who was regularly thwarted by Southampton defenders when attempting to create a decisive opening for his team.
Southampton’s defenders nullifying one of West Brom’s main attacking outlets helped them on their way to a slim victory, stretching their unbeaten run in the division to eight.
Matt Phillips’ season in numbers
Phillips has been on-song for his side this season more times than he’s underperformed, registering three goals and two assists which included a strike in West Brom’s last home match which saw them get the better of Hull City in a convincing 3-1 display.
However, with Phillips now 32 years of age, it won’t be long before his manager starts opting for fresher and hungrier options over the ex-Blackpool man to start planning for the future.
Tom Fellows could well be West Brom’s next star from down the channels in Phillips’ left-wing spot, the 20-year-old has excited fans of the West Midlands club with brief cameos off the bench in the second tier recently.
He could be drafted into the line-up soon to replace the ageing winger if Phillips’ display versus the Saints is anything to go by, the experienced midfielder way off the pace before being substituted off for the aforementioned promising number 30.
Phillips would only send one accurate cross into the opposition box all game at St Mary’s, as per Sofascore, seven of those crosses going nowhere near their intended target.
The Baggies’ number ten also lost possession 22 times in the contest to the detriment of his team, with Stuart Armstrong only losing the ball 11 times down the flanks for the hosts in contrast.
Corberan will consider dropping his usually dependable midfield option off the back of this below-par showing, Fellows eager to impress in his place to potentially displace the EFL veteran in the long term.
Fellows as Phillips’ replacement
Linked with a move away to the Bundesliga in recent times according to reports – Werder Bremen just one of the German clubs interested in the Baggies prospect – West Brom will hope they can convince Fellows to stay by giving him more first-team opportunities in the weeks to come.
Scoring 12 goals at U18 level for his boyhood club before being promoted to the senior ranks, the 20-year-old starlet has shown flashes of brilliance in the Championship this season when substituted on.
A 15-minute cameo against QPR got West Brom fans talking, nearly setting up Jed Wallace for a goal in that contest with a ball into the box.
West Brom were comfortable on the day with a 2-0 win, but Fellows would have loved to have played a part in a goal to make the victory even more convincing.
West Brom’s number 31 will have to remain patient for chances to impress in the starting eleven, but he could be gifted a start against Ipswich if Corberan decides to completely drop Phillips after an off-day versus the Saints.
With Thomas-Asante’s place also potentially uncertain having failed to score in either of his last two games, there could well be a fresh feel to the Baggies’ attack later today.
