Condition that could see £17k-a-week ace return for West Brom this season revealed | OneFootball

The Baggies boss has revealed star striker Josh Maja won’t make a return until potential play-off games.

West Brom boss Tony Mowbray has revealed striker Josh Maja won’t be available for Albion until potential play-off games, as the Nigerian international remains hampered by a lower leg injury.

Maja, who has netted 12 times this term for the Baggies, has been out of action since January after undergoing surgery on the issue sustained in training, and West Brom fans may not see the forward again until next season.

It’s a similar story to the previous campaign for the former Sunderland man, whose season was disrupted by two serious ankle injuries, and despite making a cameo appearance late into the regular season against eventual champions Leicester City, the 26-year-old didn’t feature in either of the play-off semi-final legs against Southampton.

It will be bitterly frustrating for both the club and Maja personally, who had showcased his goalscoring capabilities in the second tier during the first half of the season and adds a different dimension up front with his silky link-up play and effortless close control.

Nevertheless, Albion will have to navigate the final eight games of the campaign without Maja, aiming to fend off emerging competition as a number of sides chase down the elusive sixth spot.

Josh Maja not to return before potential West Brom play-off clashes

As reported by the Express & Star, West Brom boss Tony Mowbray revealed Josh Maja was a little bit away in terms of recovery to full fitness, pencilling in the play-off semi-final as a return date, should the Baggies finish inside the top six.

Mowbray said: "I saw Maja on Tuesday, happy, nice and smiley but still feels as if he is a little bit away, but hopefully, if we can extend the season, he might have a part to play.

"I’m sure it has been tough. He’s been in a brace thing on his left most of the time I’ve been here.

"When I bump into him in the corridor and ask how he is, he’s pretty positive. I think he’s looking forward to getting back and showing us what he can do.

"I know his talent. We obviously would like more goals in our team and Maja would probably bring that. A totally different type of footballer from (Adam) Armstrong, of course, but a combination that could really work.

"We’ve got a lot of talented boys, it’s just getting the right balance on the right day. You’d have to say Maja is a miss to the football club with his goals that he obviously could bring and has brought already the first half of the season."

Josh Maja absence dents West Brom play-off chances

Josh Maja, who earns an estimated £17,000 a week, was such an integral part to the West Brom team during the first half of the season under Carlos Corberan, with his 12 goals still ranking him as the joint fourth-highest scorer in the division.

His clinical edge in front of goal alongside his ability to transition the ball up the pitch with ease made Albion into so free-flowing in attack, leading to the Baggies being positioned at the summit of the Championship table all the way back in September 2024.

There’s no doubt Albion could do with someone of the ilk of Maja, given Adam Armstrong is struggling to make an impact when leading the line on his own, while Daryl Dike hasn’t reached full fitness and Will Lankshear is continuing to find his feet in his first loan move away from Tottenham.

It would have been intriguing to see how Maja and Armstrong’s partnership developed in a front two, which could have led to a lot more goals at the top end of the pitch and given the Black Country outfit a strong chance of not only reaching the play-offs, but coming out victorious.