Don Goodman rejects Thomas-Asante theory as Josh Maja claim made at West Brom
Don Goodman does not necessarily believe Josh Maja has Brandon Thomas-Asante’s exit to thank for his impressive West Brom form this season.
Maja has been Carlos Corberan’s go-to man in attack following Thomas-Asante’s move to Coventry City in the summer transfer window.
Had Thomas-Asante stayed at The Hawthorns, he likely would have got the nod from Corberan with Maja operating largely as a back-up option when fit.
However, Goodman rejected that theory and insists the cream always rises to the top when it comes to a player’s quality.
“I think we’re being presumptions because, ultimately, if Josh Maja showed this level of performance in pre-season – even away from the goals – then he could easily have started ahead of Thomas-Asante,” he told West Brom News.
“The manager will judge it on what he sees in pre-season and on the training ground. We can all acknowledge that, while Brandon is an excellent player, he’s not an out-and-out goalscorer.
“The impressive thing about Thomas-Asante is his work ethic and the fact he’s such a team player. I do think Maja is probably the type that will score more goals than Thomas-Asante if he stays injury-free.
“But I wouldn’t say it was a given that if Thomas-Asante stayed at West Brom then Maja would be on the bench – it’s a toss of a coin really.”
Championship top scorers 2024-25
While Thomas-Asante was always a divisive figure among the Albion fanbase, his exit fairly late into the window left a huge hole to be filled.
Maja has more than stepped up, though, having scored seven goals across his first eight Championship outings this term.
That makes him the top scorer in the division, one ahead of Norwich City attacker Borja Sainz. Maja also has an assist to his name – something that Goodman was mightily impressed by.
As per BBC Sport, Maja is scoring at a rate of 0.95 goals every 90 minutes, with his seven goals coming from 22 shots attempted for a 32 per cent goal-conversion return.
Albion may have lost back-to-back games, with Maja failing to net in the most recent of those, but it has still been a great start to the campaign for both the club and the player.
Thomas-Asante, meanwhile, has just one goal in eight league games 16th-place Coventry City.
In other West Brom news, supporters did not hold back following the 1-0 defeat to Middlesbrough.
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