Ryan Mason must make season-defining West Brom change – it involves Josh Maja | OneFootball

After suffering their first defeat of the league season, Ryan Mason must consider playing Josh Maja alongside Aune Heggebo.

West Brom have made a positive start to the 2025-26 Championship season under Ryan Mason but suffered a setback by tasting their first defeat of the league campaign last weekend.

The Baggies were beaten 1-0 at The Hawthorns by Derby County courtesy of Andi Weimann’s strike – the Rams’ only shot on target of the afternoon.

It continued a miserable run of form for Albion against Derby, with the Black Country outfit losing their last six straight games to them in all competitions.

It was a game that Ryan Mason’s men dominated though. West Brom had 67.5% possession but mustered just four shots on target, with their deficiencies in attack highlighted in throughout those 90 minutes.

Apart from scoring three at Wrexham, West Brom have failed to score more than one goal in any of their other league matches so far this term, and it may prompt Mason into making a key change to the forward line.

If he implements this, it could be season-defining and help the goals flow at the top end of the pitch at a much more regular rate, keeping the club in the hunt for promotion back to the big time after a five-year absence.

Aune Heggebo’s efforts up front aren’t being rewarded so far at West Brom

Aune Heggebo arrived to West Brom during the summer transfer window from SK Brann and has already developed into a fan favourite due to his relentless work rate and traditional centre-forward attributes.

Despite not possessing the biggest frame, the Norwegian international has fantastic strength, pinning defenders with his back to goal and holding the ball up in an attempt to bring other players into the game.

But the problem with Albion is the lack of service to him. Too often, Heggebo has been feeding off scraps, holding the ball up to try and win free kicks instead of having the option to play devastating passes through that can create goalscoring opportunities.

It hasn’t helped that Heggebo is a very honest player too, and even though we don’t want players flopping around on the turf during every tussle, officials haven’t been kind to the 24-year-old for standing his ground, with Albion then giving up possession due to a lack of support around him.

That’s a criticism for the likes of Mikey Johnston, Isaac Price and Jed Wallace, who should be busting a gut to help their frontman and look far more dangerous going forward, but that hasn’t been the case so far and has been a major factor in Albion’s inability to be proactive in front of goal.

This could be aided by the inclusion of Josh Maja either in the number 10 position or in a front two though, as Heggebo’s qualities should be complimented much more with the addition of another forward.

Inclusion of Josh Maja to the West Brom first-team could ease goalscoring woes

At the beginning of last season under Carlos Corberan, Josh Maja was such an integral part to the Albion frontline, netting 12 times before surgery for a leg injury ruled him out for the remainder of the term.

The Nigerian international’s ability to transition the ball up the pitch with ease made Albion 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.

The ex-Fulham man also had such a clinical eye for goal when given the opportunities, something the Baggies will need over the coming weeks as they go through a demanding schedule.

Maja does possess the versatility which would suit him to play either alongside Heggebo or just behind the frontman. Being a natural-born striker, Maja would be positioned a lot closer to profit from his excellent hold-up play, while Maja also has quality with his crisp passing to link up with his potential partner to share the goals with.

It would certainly see Heggebo’s hard work rewarded, with Maja able to exploit the open gaps left by his hold-up play and finish off the chances, with these added goals standing Albion in better stead to win games and cement themselves in the promotion conversation.

This move would likely have to see Isaac Price drop deeper in midfield, but the Northern Ireland international should still benefit in a box-to-box role and would be able to showcase his ability in the final third, like he’s demonstrated already.

This subtle change could be key to helping West Brom be an attacking force for the remainder of the season, and partnering that with the solid backline they already have is surely a recipe for success.

It will be intriguing to see if this happens at Middlesbrough on Friday evening, with the Baggies needing to be clinical at the Riverside Stadium if they are to come away from Teesside with a positive result.