West Brom look set to lose a couple of players to AFCON in the New Year.
A common theme of West Brom’s year has been injuries, particularly in the attacking department.
Josh Maja and Matt Phillips are the latest casualties with both set to spend the next four months on the sidelines, whilst Daryl Dike is still working on his return to action.
A string of West Brom players have been in and out of the treatment room this year and this season, and AFCON looks set to deal the Baggies a further blow next year.
Semi Ajayi and Grady Diangana are both in line for potential call ups, and now Brandon Thomas-Asante could receive a surprise call up to the Ghana squad.
He’s been included in Ghana’s 55-man provisional squad for the tournament that starts next month with the 24-year-old eligible to represent the nation.
A deserved Ghana call up for Brandon Thomas-Asante
Aside from the obvious blow it’d be to Carlos Corberan if he lost Thomas-Asante next month, it’s a huge credit to the West Brom man.
At the start of last season he was playing League Two football with Salford City and now he’s on the verge of potentially playing in a major international tournament.
He showed his class last season with his physicality and work-rate being his forte, but this season has seen his technical game come along too.
He’s so far scored six goals and assisted two more in 20 Championship outings this season, largely leading the line on his own due to injuries to Maja and Dike.
Will this change West Brom’s January plans?
Speaking in a recent episode of the Baggies Broadcast, journalist Lewis Cox tipped West Brom to potentially bring in a wide player next month given Phillips’ absence and Diangana’s potential AFCON call up.
Now though with Thomas-Asante potentially going to AFCON, it could change the Baggies’ January plans.
There’ll be added pressure on Dike to step up, maintain fitness and score goals next year, whether or not Thomas-Asante returns.
But with AFCON starting on January 9th, there’s just not enough time for Dike to get up to speed, so Corberan could be with zero strikers should Thomas-Asante get a call up.
A new striker in January then would be an absolute must and expect West Brom to target the loan market.
Corberan continues to suffer setback after setback but he continues to find a way to keep the Baggies competitive, and he’ll get over this potential obstacle too.