West Brom may have already solved their AFCON headache after Carlos Corberan comments
West Brom are currently focused on getting their Championship season properly up and running, having not won in their last four matches in England’s second tier.
But in some circles attention has already turned to January and the African Cup of Nations, where it is expected the Baggies will be without Semi Ajayi should he be a part of Nigeria’s squad for the tournament in the Ivory Coast.
While that seemingly leaves Corberan short of defensive cover at The Hawthorns, the Albion boss has already suggested that young defender Caleb Taylor will be ready to step into the heart of defence when he is required.
As quoted by the Express and Star (28 September) Corberan said: “We cannot think in January as we are in September, but it’s one of the reasons why I want all the players ready – with the ideas and with the training.
“Caleb is here to be ready for the period where maybe Ajayi isn’t here, or even with him – he might be here because of injury, or bad performances. We have good options in our squad right now, except for striker, but even then we can always find solutions in our team.”
Taylor may not be a household name to all Championship fans, but he is an incredibly bright prospect and a product of the West Brom academy who made his only Championship appearance for the Baggies in their final day 4-0 win over Barnsley in the 2021/22 campaign.
Last season, the 20-year-old spent the campaign on loan with Cheltenham Town as they avoided the drop in League One and the centre-back featured 49 times in all competitions as he got to grips with what it takes to play week in and week out in the EFL.
The Robins kept 14 clean sheets when Taylor featured and he was often the standout candidate in the backline despite playing alongside senior players like Sean Long and Charlie Raglan who have plenty of experience in senior football. [Transfermarkt]
Despite his young age and inexperience, the defender didn’t make any errors leading to goals and he even managed to contribute with two goals and an assist throughout the season, with both strikes coming from headers, a similar threat to what Ajayi poses from set pieces. [Fotmob]
Taylor also managed to create 19 chances for his teammates, 15 more than Ajayi did throughout the campaign. However, on the ball he is nowhere near as comfortable as his Albion teammate, clearing twice as often per 90 minutes, but that could be because of the differing styles of play.
Although he is inexperienced at Championship level, the 20-year-old will be chomping at the bit to get his chance in the Albion first-team and given the indifferent start to the campaign at The Hawthorns, he may not have to wait until January and the AFCON to get an opportunity.
In other West Brom news, David Prutton has predicted the result of the Baggies clash with Preston