The West Brom players likely to leave in the next few weeks

In partnership with

Football League World

·26 December 2023

The West Brom players likely to leave in the next few weeks

Highlights

West Bromwich Albion may consider offloading Martin Kelly in January due to his lack of appearances since sustaining a knee injury.
Tom Fellows and Reyes Cleary, both academy products, are in need of more playing time and could benefit from loan moves to prove themselves in senior football.
The presence of threatening attacking players has limited playing time for Fellows and Cleary, but they have potential and should be given opportunities in the Football League.

West Bromwich Albion boss Carlos Corberan is doing a stellar job at the Baggies, and has turned a side who failed to reach the top six for two consecutive seasons, into a side who are very much in the play-off picture.

As the January transfer window looms, Albion supporters may be excited to see who Corberan brings into the club, to enhance their chances of promotion back to the top-flight for the first time since their 2021 Premier League exit.

OneFootball Videos

However, on the other side of that, there will inevitably be some players who depart the Hawthorns this January transfer window, and the Baggies will be hopeful that this does not dent their play-off bid.

Martin Kelly

One of the players who the Baggies may see the back of in the upcoming transfer window is former Liverpool and Crystal Palace defender Kelly, who sustained a serious knee injury while on loan at Wigan Athletic last campaign.

Latics boss Shaun Maloney brought Kelly to the north-west in the hope that the ex-Premier League ace could help maintain the club's Championship status, but this did not transpire as the severe injury he sustained came during his 'Tics debut against Blackburn Rovers in February.

It is now over 10 months since the injury, but the former Palace man has still not made a single appearance in any competition since, so the Baggies will surely consider offloading him in January on either a loan or permanent basis.

Tom Fellows

Corberan knows his best attacking formula this season, as former Salford City striker Brandon Thomas-Asante is thriving off the service provided by threatening players such as Grady Diangana, Jed Wallace and Jeremy Sarmiento.

The presence of these dangerous players means that Corberan has one of the second-tier's best frontlines, but it has led to a lack of playing time for the likes of 20-year-old Tom Fellows, who spent last season on loan at League Two outfit Crawley Town.

Furthermore, Fellows did not manage to score a single goal in 38 league appearances for Crawley last campaign, so he should be given another opportunity, and a loan move this January, to prove he is capable of scoring goals in the Football League.

Reyes Cleary

Another Albion academy product, who could really do with some playing time in senior football, is 19-year-old Reyes Cleary, who has made just a couple of appearances for the Baggies senior team, after making his debut back in 2022.

Cleary is the joint top scorer in the Premier League 2 Division 2 this season, having found the back of the net on 16 occasions this campaign, so the youngster has an obvious eye for goal in youth football.

The 19-year-old should be given the opportunity to prove he can score goals in senior football this season, though, and League One and Two teams would surely want to sign the starlet, if Corberan makes him available on the loan market.