Martin Kelly may be given minutes for West Brom under-21’s team before making his return to first-team action according to Joseph Chapman, after returning to first-team training.
Kelly suffered a serious knee injury towards the end of last season and required surgery, before then facing another setback, but returned to training on 20 November [West Brom Twitter account].
Now, it appears he will be given an opportunity to acclimatise to match action with the academy side before making his bow in a return to the senior team.
Writing for Birmingham Live [28 December], Chapman shared: “Kelly is back in first-team training but under 21s minutes are likely in order first.”
Long-term absences beginning to return
The return of Kelly would signify the beginning of a return for several of the long-term injuries at West Brom. Daryl Dike and Adam Reach were given a similar time frame for their returns, and are thought to be not far behind the defender in their recoveries.
Dike, for example, is expected to return to first-team action within the next few weeks after the boss confirmed he is working towards a return, despite a slight disagreement between the manager and the medical staff.
While Kelly may not be the first name on the team sheet at The Hawthorns, he is still a model professional and an excellent influence to have around the squad both in the dressing room and on the pitch, as his experience and reliability are the keys to his role.
The defender was loaned out to Wigan last season, where he suffered the injury blow, but earned the man of the match award in his first appearance, showing he can still have an impact on the side when selected despite his age and lack of game time.
In other West Brom news, an ex-referee has responded to the latest Albion controversy.
