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West Bromwich Albion will hope to string together a run of positive results off the back of the encouraging 1-0 home win over Norwich City on Boxing Day, Carlos Corberan‘s Baggies full value for the win at the Hawthorns over an inconsistent Canaries outfit.
The West Midlands-based club have been as up and down as David Wagner’s Norwich in recent weeks, a 2-0 win over Rotherham United earlier in December was then followed up by a draw and a defeat with this slim win last match hopefully getting them back on track.
Corberan could tinker with his lineup slightly versus Leeds United tonight in a bid to pick up another three points in a congested patch of fixtures, with two possible changes from the win over the Canaries.
1
GK – Alex Palmer
Leading the way in the division with the most clean sheets amassed – picking up his 11th of the campaign already against Norwich – there’s no question marks over Alex Palmer’s position in the starting lineup as Corberan’s main goalkeeper.
It could have been a different story altogether in terms of picking up another clean sheet if Palmer wasn’t alert to a header late on, a fingertip save denying the Canaries as the clock ticked down.
2
RB – Darnell Furlong
Darnell Furlong’s position in the side is also fixed at this point in time, the 28-year-old starting 22 of West Brom’s 24 second-tier matches this season.
Furlong was as dependable as ever in the Norwich victory, winning all three of his aerial duels in the contest – as per Sofascore – to help his team pick up another clean sheet.
3
CB – Semi Ajayi
Kyle Bartley could however be axed to make way for Semi Ajayi ahead of the tough test of Leeds tonight, West Brom’s number five not at the races against Norwich before being substituted off just after the hour mark.
The no-nonsense approach typical of Bartley’s game was missing, the ex-Arsenal man failing to register a single tackle in the game whilst further only winning a singular aerial duel from his time on the Hawthorns turf.
Ajayi looked lively substituted on for Bartley in contrast, winning all of the aerial duels that came his way in a short but sweet cameo.
With the need for fresh legs paramount as the fixtures come thick and fast, Corberan could be tempted to give Bartley a rest with his 6 foot 4 titan Ajayi filling in instead against Leeds.
4
CB – Cedric Kipre
Cedric Kipre will, however, be retained even if his usual centre-back partner drops out, the 27-year-old defender putting in a solid shift to keep Norwich at bay last game.
Alongside rolling his sleeves up to fulfil his defensive duties, Kipre was composed on the ball throughout – amassing 61 accurate passes from 77 touches, with one pass going down as a key ball in the win.
5
LB – Conor Townsend
Conor Townsend will also get the nod to start again versus Leeds, the West Brom number three energetic down the channels all afternoon.
Accurate with three crosses in the contest, the 30-year-old left-back couldn’t quite muster up a second assist of the season regardless of how hard he tried. Could he help himself to a goal contribution against Farke’s visitors tonight?
6
CM – Nathaniel Chalobah
Okay Yokuslu could also be sacrificed for the clash against Leeds alongside Bartley, Yokuslu not at his best against Norwich.
The Turkish midfielder won just three of his seven duels in the slim 1-0 win, whilst his replacement off the bench in Nathaniel Chalobah matched that total from just ten minutes on the pitch after his teammate was hauled off.
Chalobah would pick up only his sixth start of the season if selected for the Leeds game, the one-time England senior international exercising admirable patience at the Hawthorns waiting in the wings.
7
CM – Alex Mowatt
Alex Mowatt will be one of the first names on Corberan’s teamsheet against Leeds, West Brom’s number 27 desperate to put in another stellar display from midfield against his former employers tonight.
Mowatt was at the heart of most attacking moves orchestrated by the Baggies against the Canaries on Boxing Day, amassing 107 touches with the experienced midfielder’s passing accuracy coming in at an impressive 94%.
An assist in the contest somehow evaded Mowatt despite him notching up three key passes, West Brom’s reliable midfield presence a shoo-in for a start against the Whites.
8
RM – Grady Diangana
Grady Diangana was equally as dangerous advancing forward, a much-improved display from the Congolese winger who had underperformed in matches recently prior to the Norwich home success.
Diangana would assist the decisive match-winning goal from Brandon Thomas-Asante, fortuitously helping a cross into the area find the striker to bundle the ball home.
The slick Baggies attacker could have a goal himself in this one, hitting two shots off-target with one requiring a block.
9
CAM – John Swift
John Swift also dazzled in attack alongside a much-improved Diangana, the ex-Reading man back in the lineup by Corberan and a justified pick based on his 90 minutes against the visitors from Norfolk.
The attacking midfielder couldn’t quite add a seventh goal to his resume for the season but it wasn’t through a lack of trying, Swift notching up an outrageous nine efforts on Angus Gunn’s goal with one effort in particular hitting the woodwork.
Swift’s lively showing will see him start against Leeds, the 28-year-old eager to score tonight at the Hawthorns to net his first Baggies goal since early October.
10
LM – Jed Wallace
Jed Wallace rounds off an impressive array of attackers behind Thomas-Asante leading the line, the West Brom captain equally as effective operating down the left-hand side compared to Swift and Diangana.
The Norwich defenders had a tricky afternoon in truth thwarting Wallace foraying forward, the ex-Millwall man accurate with eight crosses into the area that usually resulted in a shot being fired at the Canaries goal off the back of his creativity.
Wallace will hope he can notch up an assist against Leeds, helping his team pull off a statement victory against Farke’s promotion chasers in the process.
11
ST – Brandon Thomas-Asante
With Daryl Dike edging towards full fitness according to reports, Thomas-Asante could well have competition for his starting spot up top in the West Midlands very soon.
For the time being, however, he’s Corberan’s starting striker by a country mile – scoring his seventh goal of the season against Norwich last match, showing all the instincts you’d expect of a centre-forward to be in the right place at the right time to fire home.
West Brom predicted lineup vs Leeds in full: GK – Palmer; RB – Furlong, CB – Ajayi, CB – Kipre, LB – Townsend; CM – Chalobah, CM – Mowatt; RM – Diangana, CAM – Swift, LM – Wallace; ST – Thomas-Asante
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