West Brom handed big double boost - it 'will be very important' for Ryan Mason's side | OneFootball

West Bromwich Albion have two players back in training following a period on the sidelines

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

West Bromwich Albion have made a mixed start to the 2025/26 campaign.

The Baggies kicked off the season in flying form, with victories over Blackburn Rovers, Wrexham and Stoke City firing them into the top three during the September international break.

Albion’s form has dropped off since then, with back-to-back defeats against Derby County and Middlesbrough damaging for their promotion chase.

Ryan Mason was handed the mission of leading West Brom forward this season and recruited players such as Alfie Gilchrist, Nathaniel Phillips and Aune Heggebø to help him with this task.

There have been positive signs for Albion during the opening stanza of this season, but Mason has also had to deal with a number of issues that have prevented him from operating at full strength.

One of these problems has been injury concerns, with both Daryl Dike and Tammer Bany missing the majority of the season thus far.

Recently, the Baggies were handed a shot of positivity with the news that both of these players have returned to training, with a view to featuring for the first team again soon.

Football League World’s West Bromwich Albion fan pundit, Callum Burgess, believes that the duo returning to fitness is a massive boost for the Black Country outfit at this point in the season but states that both players still need to prove themselves at the Hawthorns.

Daryl Dike and Tammer Bany returns seen as a positive boost for West Bromwich Albion

“I think that it's a very good time for both of them to return to first team training with the international break approaching,” stated Callum. “It should hopefully give them time over the next few weeks to get up to fitness.

“It definitely feels like a very big point in their Albion careers. Dike’s had lots of injuries and it's probably the last chance he's going to have of making a mark in an Albion shirt before his contract ends in the summer.

“We spent a decent amount of money on him and it's been quite frustrating for him with injuries. Bany came on at Bristol City away last year and played very, very well. He looks like a creative spark.

“I think that for both of them, returning will be very important and could be a very big part of Albion's season.”

West Bromwich Albion have looked to be a competitive outfit during the opening stages of this season, having only been bested by a single goal in both of their league defeats at this moment in time.

One thing they have struggled to do is score goals regularly however, with the Baggies netting more than once on just a single occasion during their first seven league matches.

This will be a major area of concern for Mason, who won’t fail to recognise that victories will become increasingly harder to achieve if his side can’t hit the back of the net on multiple occasions across 90 minutes.

Dike and Bany may have struggled for fitness and consistency in recent times, but both players offer an extra attacking option for Mason to think about.

These fresh sources of creative inspiration are much needed for the Baggies boss, given how much his team has struggled to impact opposition defences and could have a massive impact on West Brom’s results in the ensuing weeks.