West Brom fans won’t be happy with latest Kyle Bartley contract development
Kyle Bartley is one of West Brom’s longest-serving players and was recalled to the Baggies’ starting XI by new boss Carlos Coberan in the team’s 1-0 win over Blackpool.
Bartley has faced criticism from West Brom fans, with claims being made that he’s epitomised everything bad about the direction the club has been heading down in recent years.
Nevertheless, new boss Corberan has unleashed a love-in for Bartley, suggesting that a new contract could be on the way with his current deal set to expire.
“In the time I am working with him I was watching one player that was leading the team by example – and that’s the key,” said Corberan as quoted by the Express and Star.
“When the important players lead the team by example (then) everyone is going to follow.
“This can be different in leading teams in different ways. I watched a player leading the team by example and a player with the right mentality, that’s why he was in the first XI.
“And for me, I saw in the previous game one of the best performances of the year. I watched a player with the right concentration and mentality to face the situation.”
Surely not.
These quotes claiming Bartley’s brilliance from the new West Brom head coach are wide of the mark of how Baggies fans view him.
Bartley has been one of the club’s worst defenders in recent years and how he’s survived seven permanent managers is beyond belief.
Corberan promised change at The Hawthorns, a new brand of Bielsa-style football that would see the end of torrid defenders like Bartley playing again.
It’s baffling how Bartley was chosen to start the game against Blackpool and now the 2018 Darren Moore signing seems to have won over Corberan.
There’s no Granit Xhaka redemption here folks, Bartley has proven on multiple occasions that he’s prone to lazy and clumsy defending.
Starting him in must-win fixtures is going around in circles, the same thing will happen again and again until he’s out of the team completely.
I’m sure fans would love to be proved wrong on this one, Saturday afternoon’s game against a fierce QPR attack will pose the real questions of Bartley should Coberan start him.
In other West Brom news, Chris Lepkowski has addressed rumours of the Baggies going into administration after what happened recently.