West Brom play-off push still alive amid Karlan Grant and Daryl Dike developments
When West Brom striker Daryl Dike was stretchered off the field during their 2-1 win against Stoke City, many supporters would rightly have been cursing their luck.
Carlos Corberan’s side kept their Championship playoff hopes alive after coming from behind to defeat the Potters on Saturday (15 April) and remain just three points off Blackburn Rovers in sixth place.
With five season-defining games remaining in their season, losing Dike to injury was a sizeable blow, but it may have opened the door for forgotten man Karlan Grant to barge through after returning to action.
With Corberan confirming after the game that the U.S. international had sustained an Achilles problem, the Spanish manager is in need of a contingency plan in attack.
Grant, 25, was set to leave The Hawthorns in the January transfer window, but since the move to Swansea City fell through at the last moment, he has seemingly never been fully trusted by Corberan.
However, the forward is now in line for a prominent role in the Championship run-in, with Dike and Grady Diangana sidelined and Brandon Thomas-Asante the only other alternative to lead the line.
Grant may have had his struggles this season, but under previous manager Steve Bruce he was West Brom’s major goalscoring option, netting 18 goals from 44 appearances last term. [Transfermarkt]
There is no doubt about the Englishman’s natural eye for goal, and even if his role is mainly from the West Brom bench in the coming weeks, he can still play a sizeable role in the club’s Premier League dream.
Injury expert Dr Rajpal Brar told West Brom News that Grant might not be entirely ready to play an entire 90 minutes after only returning from his quad injury in the last few weeks.
Despite this, and his long-term future in the West Midlands still remaining up in the air, Grant still possesses the tools to help fire West Brom towards promotion over the coming weeks, even in a cameo role.
In other West Brom news, ITV pundit reacts to ‘incredible’ development after 2-1 win v Stoke City.