Carlos Corberan has explained that the system he used in West Brom’s draw with Bristol City made it difficult for him to introduce both Jeremey Sarmiento and Grady Diangana.
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Discussing both players’ positions, as quoted by Birmingham Live (16 September) he said: “It was not about physicality with these two players. It was the fact that to play with Sarmiento and with Diangana, I needed to change the shape.
“If we need to put these two players then we need to change the structure and that is why sometimes these changes are no problem, but need they some time and sometimes until you adapt the game can change.
“The team was finding a way to attack the opponent, and I had to delay the changes that I wanted to do before.”
West Brom did cause Bristol City plenty of problems in the second half of the match at Ashton Gate, creating 14 shots but they were unable to test Max O’Leary once in the entire match with zero attempts on target.
Corberan’s side have managed to score 10 goals in six Championship matches so far this season so there is no need for Albion to completely change their system because they’ve failed to score in a single game.
But both Diangana and Sarmiento are incredibly gifted technical players and at their best are more than capable of being difference-makers in the West Brom team. Until both players start matches consistently there will be calls from fans for Corberan to start the attacking midfielders.
Playing effectively in the system that the Spanish manager has employed at The Hawthorns requires players to be incredibly fit. With Diangana only recently returning from injury and Sarmiento still adapting to life in the Midlands it is yet to be seen if either player is ready to complete a full 90 minutes in that style remains to be seen.
Maybe, the midweek visit to Vicarage Road against an indifferent Watford side may be the best chance for one of the two players to get a full run out.