West Brom player could stand to benefit if Southampton make Carlos Corberan move: View | OneFootball

West Brom winger Grady Diangana could receive more game time if head coach Carlos Corberan makes the move to Southampton.

It has been an excellent start to the season for West Bromwich Albion in the Championship.

West Brom suffered heartbreak as they were beaten by Southampton in last season's play-off semi-finals, but they look set to be among the promotion contenders again this time around.

Albion made an outstanding start to the campaign, winning five and drawing one of their first six league games, but their form has declined slightly in recent weeks, and after being held to a 0-0 draw by Millwall before the international break, they are without a win in their last three matches.

However, the Baggies are still fourth in the table, just two points behind second-placed Sheffield United and leaders Sunderland, and they will be looking to return to winning ways when they face Oxford United at the Kassam Stadium on Saturday.

Albion will be delighted with their season so far, but one negative of their positive form is that speculation about the future of head coach Carlos Corberan has emerged once again.

Carlos Corberan linked with Southampton job

Corberan was reportedly under consideration for the Burnley and Leicester City jobs in the summer, but he remained at The Hawthorns, much to the relief of Baggies supporters.

However, it has not taken long for Corberan to be linked with another club, and the Sunday Mirror print edition (22 September, page 72) claimed that the Spaniard is being monitored by Southampton.

Saints head coach Russell Martin is under serious pressure after his side picked up just one point from their first seven games of the season in the Premier League. While he has survived the international break, there are reports that he could be sacked if his side are beaten by fellow strugglers Leicester City this weekend.

In truth, it seems unlikely that Corberan would swap promotion-chasing Albion for relegation-threatened Southampton at this point, but the speculation over the 41-year-old's future will be a constant concern for the Baggies.

While most at the club will be desperate to see Corberan stay, one player who could potentially benefit from his departure is winger Grady Diangana, who has found his game time limited so far this season and has the talent to establish himself as the main man under another boss.

After helping Albion to promotion to the Premier League while on loan from West Ham United in the 2019-20 season, Diangana completed a permanent move to The Hawthorns in the summer of 2020 for a fee of £12 million, which could rise to a club-record £18 million.

Diangana initially failed to live up to his significant price tag after joining the Baggies on a full-time basis, but there were signs that he was getting back to his best last season as he scored seven goals and provided eight assists in 36 appearances.

The 26-year-old would have been hoping to build on his impressive campaign, but it has not worked out that way so far, and only one of his six appearances this season has come from the start.

Diangana has has some injury issues in the early weeks of the season, and Corberan will have been reluctant to change a winning team, but the winger will still be disappointed by his lack of minutes.

Corberan has insisted that Diangana remains an important part of his plans, telling Birmingham Live: "My opinion about Grady didn't change.

"For me, he's a winger/playmaker. He can play on the sides, or he can play inside. The best thing for me about him playing on the side is that he can dribble, but his work ethic and work in defence is unbelievable for a winger."

Diangana will certainly be needed over the busy winter period, but despite Corberan's positive comments about him, question marks remain over how much game time he will receive, particularly with strong competition for places from the likes of Tom Fellows, Jed Wallace, John Swift, Mikey Johnston, and Karlan Grant.

Grant is the perfect example of how quickly things can change in football, with the 27-year-old now a crucial part of Corberan's plans after returning from his loan spell at Cardiff City, so Diangana should remain optimistic that he can earn his place back.