‘Let him go’, ‘Keep him on as a coach’ – West Brom Super Fans discuss midfielder situation
This is part of a regular series from our panel of West Brom Super Fans. Each week, our Super Fans will deliver their verdicts on the biggest talking points and news stories around The Hawthorns.
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Gareth Barry celebrated his 39th birthday last month and there were sad signs that he showed that age on Tuesday night as West Brom lost to Newcastle United.
The former Aston Villa midfielder had played every minute of Albion’s FA Cup campaign until he was substituted off in the 57th minute at The Hawthorns this week.
Although the Baggies improved after Filip Krovinovic replaced Barry in the midfield, it wasn’t enough to stop them from losing 3-2 to Steve Bruce’s side.
Barry’s contract expires at the end of the season and now that West Brom are out of the FA Cup, it is hard to see him getting much – if any – game-time until the campaign ends.
He’s not played in the Championship in 2020 and the poor performance against Newcastle suggests he’s well down Slaven Bilic’s pecking order for the centre of the midfield.
Kevin Phillips has this week told West Brom News that it’s a possibility that Barry played his final game for Albion on Tuesday and our panel of West Brom Super Fans, on the whole, tend to agree:
Luke Pollard (@LukeyP_wba)
Jon W (@JonW1995)
Lee Armstrong (@UncleSock)
Hayden Belgrave (@belgrave_hayden)
Jamie Rossiter (@Jay89R)
Sharon (@shazkee)
Harv Plant (@harvplant)
No player has made more appearances in the Premier League than Barry and there’s no doubt that his experience has been a major asset at West Brom in his time there.
However it was clear to see on Tuesday that he might not have the legs to play in the Premier League next season if the Baggies do what is expected of them and win promotion.
It’s interesting that a lot of our Super Fans have suggested that Barry is offered a coaching role once his playing contract expires.
That could be quite a good idea if he’s up for it but there’s always a chance he’ll want to see if he can do another year of playing first.
We’ll have to wait until the summer to find out for certain.
In other West Brom news, Darren Fletcher has criticised the Baggies support on Tuesday night.