Carlton Palmer provides opinion on 23-year-old’s starting XI credentials at West Brom | OneFootball

West Brom managed to secure the signing of Brandon Thomas-Asante late on during the transfer window, with Birmingham City missing out on the exciting striker.

Thomas-Asante arrived in the Midlands from League Two outfit Salford City, where he had netted five times and had provided two assists in seven matches.

Starting off positively at The Hawthorns, the 23-year-old netted twice in his first two appearances from the bench, before starting his first league game in a 1-1 draw against Norwich City.

Now, with the international break providing an opportunity to reflect on the campaign thus far when asked if the exciting striker can go on and start regularly for Albion as the season progresses, Carlton Palmer told Football League World: “Yeah, I do believe so.

“He scored four goals before he went to West Brom. He’s now got two in two games for West Brom, so that will give him the confidence that he can score at this level.

“He’s blessed with great pace and he has started his career really, really brightly at West Brom.

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“So, you know, at the end of the day, managers pick teams but players influence the manager’s mind when he’s picking the team, and he might well have just done that.”

The verdict

Thomas-Asante has all the tools to be a big hit at The Hawthorns as the campaign progresses, with his early-season form suggesting backing that up even further.

Of course, he is still adapting to a much higher level of football than he has played before but he has come into a side that will consistently create chances for him.

Given Daryl Dike’s absence, Thomas-Asante could see a run of starts come his way on the other side of this international break and he will is deserving of that.

However, he will need to keep up this momentum and level of confidence with games set to be coming thick and fast.