Exclusive: Phillips claims loanee has ‘settled’ at West Brom and ‘could do a job’ in PL
We’re delighted to welcome former West Brom striker Kevin Phillips as our exclusive columnist. Each week he’ll be giving his views on the biggest talking points at The Hawthorns…
Kevin Phillips is adamant that Filip Krovinovic has proven his ability to play in the Premier League while on loan at West Brom this season.
Krovinovic, 24, joined the Baggies on a season-long loan from Benfica in the summer transfer window to hook up with fellow Croatian Slaven Bilic at The Hawthorns.
The former NK Zagreb playmaker initially impressed in pre-season and during the opening matches of the Championship season but gradually fell out of favour and failed to start many league games between September and December.
However a tweak to the formation and a couple of injury issues led to Krovinovic getting a second chance to shine in January and February and he slowly helped West Brom rediscover their form following a difficult start to 2020.
Krovinovic’s most recent impressive display came in the FA Cup defeat to Newcastle last week when he came off the bench to inspire a second-half comeback that almost overturned a three-goal deficit.
Phillips was at that match and reckons that Krovinovic, along with fellow loan stars Matheus Pereira and Grady Diangana, have proven they’re good enough to play in the top-flight.
“It’s always hard, it’s a big jump from the Championship to the Premier League,” Phillips told West Brom News.
“Technically he’s very good, he travels with the ball well, he’s got a good pass so yes, I would say he’s a player – like Pereira and Diangana – that if you go up, they’ve showed they’re settled at the club.
“Can they step up to the Premier League? I think all three of those players could do a job in the Premier League, definitely.
“I watched him last week [against Newcastle] and I’m looking forward to seeing him again.
“But certainly if they get to the Premier League, he looks like he’s got the quality to make that jump.”
Krovinovic’s form has blown hot and cold for most of the season so we are yet to see the consistency from him that it could take for him to stand-out in the Premier League.
But still, what we have seen from the Croatian playmaker is that he is super efficient in possession of the ball and has a great impact when coming off the bench.
Should West Brom sign him permanently in the summer?
Unlike Pereira, Albion don’t have the option to buy Krovinovic from Benfica [The Athletic] but it could be worth a shot because, as pointed out by Phillips, he is already settled at the club.
In other West Brom news, Phillips is adamant that this under-fire 26-year-old will start every game up until the end of the season.