Josh Maja handed major boost at West Brom amid news at Norwich City
West Brom star Josh Maja is currently three goals behind Norwich City forward Borja Sainz in the Championship goalscoring charts.
The Nigerian ended an eight-match barren streak in front of goal with a brace in the 3-1 win against Preston North End on Wednesday (1 January).
However, Sainz has been charged by the FA for an alleged spitting incident during Norwich’s 2-1 loss against Sunderland (21 December), and while the forward will be available for selection over the weekend if found guilty, he could face a six-match ban.
Maja recently lauded Chris Brunt for breathing a “new lease of life” into the Black Country outfit, and he could now march towards the Golden Boot under the interim Albion boss.
Josh Maja could fire West Brom to the Championship playoffs
The win against Preston moved West Brom into fifth place in the Championship table and back within playoff contention.
Although plenty of football remains, the Baggies are in a strong position heading into the second half of the season to record consecutive playoff appearances.
Maja started the year like a house on fire, scoring seven goals – including a hat trick against Queens Parks Rangers on the opening day – in his first seven appearances.
However, as the season wore on and former boss Carlos Corberan struggled with draws, his form in front of goal fell off a cliff.
Regardless of where the Baggies finish this season, Maja marching up the goalscoring charts can only be viewed as a positive and will undoubtedly see his value soar.
Premier League strugglers Ipswich Town are expressing interest in the West Brom forward in January [Fichajes] as they seek a regular goalscorer to work alongside Liam Delap.
The reported £9.9million asking price would be a respectable fee for Maja, but considering the Baggies are still managerless, losing him now would be far too significant a risk.
Instead, his immediate focus should be to capitalise on Sainz’s impending ban and rise the goalscoring charts, should he wish to leave The Hawthorns at the end of the season – finishing as the Golden Boot winner will drastically improve his chances of a big move.
In other West Brom news, Valencia react to Carlos Corberan’s debut after his Baggies exit.
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