West Brom boss Shan insists squad is strong despite lack of striking options
West Brom boss James Shan believes the club’ s squad is strong enough to cop e with the loss of top scorer Dwight Gayle.
Albion must continue their Sky B et Championship pro - motion challenge without the striker after he was sent off in the 2-1 first-leg loss at Villa Park on Saturday.
Gayle, on loan from Newcastle, scored his 24th goal of the season but was then shown a second yellow card late on. His suspension means he misses tonight’s second leg and will also rule him out of the final at Wembley, should West Brom get there.
With Hal Rob son-K a nu also suspended following his red card at Derby on the final day of the season, Jay Rodriguez will likely play as a lone striker tonight in a 4-5-1 formation.
Shan said: “He (Gayle) is a massive player for us but Jay has been very productive and hasn’t played an awful lot of minutes this season in central areas.
“So it gives Jay the opportunity to get a more central role and he can be a big threat from there. It also presents opportunities for other people. We’ve got a big squad and a squad of high quality and the players play with a mentality that they’re waiting for their opportunity. So the opportunity will be presented for one individual.”
That might mean a recall for attacking midfielder Rekeem Harper, who was left out of the squad altogether for the first leg for tactical reasons. The 19-year-old had started five of West Brom’s last six games of the regular season.
Shan said: “We came with a game plan to sit a bit deeper and be a bit more compact and maybe have more of a defensive head on.
“Can R eke em do that? Of course. Rek is a powerful young boy, very good in the half-turn and he can play forward. He is probably more of an offensive midfield player than one that will sit in and screen and deny.”
Villa boss Dean Smith insists he wants to win tonight. His side have a 2-1 lead from the first leg but Smith is adamant they will not merely attempt to preserve their advantage.
Smith’ s side were on the front foot for large periods of the match at home and he wants them to adopt the same approach.
“I won’t be sat behind the ball as much as Albion were. My aim is to go and win the game. We’ll be looking to score more goals,” he told the club’s official website.
“I said before that the tie couldn’t be won in the first leg. We’ve given ourselves an advantage, but that’s all it is. We’ve got to go and perform at The Hawthorns now.
“It’ll be a different game. I can’t see them playing how they did (at Villa Park).
“We’ve got to go there full of confidence. There’s a lot of belief in this team, that’s for sure.”
Smith expects to have a full squad available. Villa’s defensive unit looks virtually set in stone, but her faces selection dilemma sin mid field and attack. Conor Hourihane came off the bench to inspire the comeback on Saturday, replacing Glenn Whelan whose mistake led to West Brom taking the lead. His impact, together with the prospect of a second game in four days for 35-yearold Whelan, could result in Hourihane getting the nod at The Hawthorns.
Smith must also consider who lines up alongside Anwar El Ghazi and Tammy Abraham up front. Albert Adomah could keep his place but Andre Green is an alternative.