Saikat Mandal

Fri 10 February 2023 18:10, UK

Chris Lepkowski has suggested that West Brom midfielder Tom Rogic is “one of the best” in the league in terms of technical abilities, but he is very inconsistent.

Rogic has struggled to feature regularly for the Baggies in the Championship this season, and Carlos Corberan has admitted it’s “unfair” to keep leaving him out [Birmingham Mail, 10 February].

However, Lepkowski suggests on Twitter (10 February) that his inconsistency is “going to harm him”, but doesn’t find his situation unfair.

“Technically, Rogic is one of the best in the league; certainly at the club. But the inability to produce consistently is going to harm him in a team that’s going so well. Not sure it’s ‘unfair’. Just the way it is. Produce, or miss out,” wrote Lepkowski.

Spot on

Rogic is a fantastic midfielder, and there’s no doubt that he has got loads of quality. The Australian enjoyed rich success at Celtic, but he hasn’t been able to deliver consistently at the Hawthorns.

Corberan probably feels that he can’t give him more game time as he deserves, but that’s how it is. The Spaniard picks the best team for the club, and that’s why he is paid for. Rogic needs to grab the opportunities presented to him, or else he will miss out.

There is also another aspect. Rogic is not a versatile player and therefore, he can’t be used enough from the bench as well. Managers usually keep players on the bench who can function in multiple roles depending on the situation, but the same can’t be said about Rogic.

At the moment, the 30-year-old will have to stay patient and wait for his chances. He was playing regularly before Christmas, but clearly, he has dropped down the pecking order under Corberan.

In other West Brom news, the boss posted a message direct to the supporters after the huge news coming out of the club.