West Brom defender Erik Pieters limped off the pitch in the 77th minute of Saturday’s (23 September) 0-0 draw with Millwall, and any injury to him could prove to be bad news at The Hawthorns after what happened last time he was missing.
Carlos Corberan has since claimed it is just a tight muscle, although he compared it to the injury suffered by Josh Maja in revealing that he also didn’t expect that injury to be as bad as it eventually was.
Pieters would currently be expected to return for next week when the Baggies face three games in seven days, playing Saturday, Tuesday and Friday, but the extent of his injury remains to be seen.
Speaking following the game, Corberan told Birmingham Live: “No, he is tight, the muscle is very tight.
“He couldn’t keep playing. It looks like it’s not an injury, but I don’t know yet – I didn’t expect to have the injury to Maja and for my striker to be out for eight weeks.
“Hopefully we don’t lose any of our players, because we have a week to prepare for the next game but then it’s Saturday, Tuesday, Friday. It’s the most demanding week that we can have.”
Pieters has started all but two of the Baggies’ Championship fixtures so far this season, proving his importance to the system utilised by Corberan, with his experience and ability each playing a part in the role he plays on the left-hand side of a back three.
Last time Pieters was forced to miss a game came in the defeat to Huddersfield at The Hawthorns, with the visitors snatching a last-minute winner. Corberan had slightly tweaked his system to make up for the loss of Pieters, which contributed to their poor performance.
In their previous game, the 4-2 victory over Middlesbrough at The Hawthorns, both Pieters and Ajayi played 90 minutes on either side of a solid back three, allowing Darnell Furlong and Matt Phillips to push further forward as wing-backs and create further up the field.
The absence of both players appeared to be the inspiration behind Carlos Corberan’s decision to change his formation in favour of a back four, with the aforementioned wing-backs dropping deeper as full-backs, and Conor Townsend replacing Phillips in that role, limiting their influence in the attacking phase of play.
If this is the way the boss sees most fit to make up for the absence of his preferred left-sided defender, it could spell bad news for next week’s clash against Preston, although fans will hope the boss has learned from the mistakes of that day.