Exclusive: Pundit tips West Brom loan star to be benched for clash v Birmingham
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 believes that Slaven Bilic will start Callum Robinson over Grady Diangana on the left-wing when West Brom play Birmingham on Saturday.
Albion will resume their Championship campaign with a West Midlands derby showdown at The Hawthorns this weekend, over three months after the fixture was originally scheduled to take place.
Diangana, 22, was unavailable for the game when it was down to be played in March due to a hamstring injury he picked up in January.
The on-loan West Ham winger has barely played for the Baggies since December due to a number of injury issues but the coronavirus-enforced suspension of play has allowed him to return to fitness in time for the club’s final nine games.
However, Phillips believes that Robinson, 24, is more likely to start on the left-wing than Diangana this weekend with the Sheffield United loanee in top form before the lockdown.
“I’d go with Robinson,” Phillips told West Brom News when asked who he thinks will start out of the two wingers.
“Diangana’s had his fair share of injuries this year and Robinson is a fantastic player.
“If Birmingham are being stubborn and hard to break down then it’s great to have someone like Diangana or Matty Phillips to come off the bench to try and unlock the defence.
“In those areas, they’ll have too much for Birmingham.
“It’s a great headache for Slaven Bilic to have and he hasn’t had that many times this season.”
Diangana has not played more than 45 minutes’ worth of competitive football since the 5-1 hammering of Swansea on December 8.
Even though no one has kicked a ball in anger in over three months, it would be fair to assume that Diangana is a little behind the rest in terms of match fitness.
Robinson’s form pre-lockdown does not warrant him being dropped so we’re going to agree with Super Kev here and say that the former Preston winger is more likely to start against Blues than Diangana.
In other West Brom news, it has been suggested this 29-year-old signed by Tony Pulis could leave in the next transfer window.
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