West Brom vs Preston North End early injury news as 7 out and 3 doubts for Championship clash
The latest injury news as West Brom host Preston in a key Championship encounter
Championship promotion contenders West Bromwich Albion are aiming to bounce back from their worst result of the season so far.
The Baggies were beaten 3-0 by Millwall in a dismal afternoon in the capital last time out but have the perfect opportunity to make amends on home comforts against Preston North End in the first match after the October international break.
West Brom have just one of their four home matches so far under new manager Ryan Mason and will hope to try and shift that pattern in the coming weeks and turn the Hawthorns into something of a fortress.
Their opponents Preston, managed by former Sheffield United boss Paul Heckingbottom, were many people’s pre-season favourites for relegation, but they’ve so far been immensely difficult to beat - losing just one of their opening nine games and finding themselves in a stellar fourth position at this early stage.
West Brom boss Mason will hope to name as strong a team as possible for this challenging test but does have a few injury headaches to contend with. As does his opposite number in the Preston dugout. With that in mind, we take a look at the latest early injury reports from both teams in the build-up to both manager’s press conferences later in the week.
West Brom injury latest
Southampton loanee Charlie Taylor is a slight doubt for this weekend’s fixture with a minor knock. He’s likely to face a late fitness test ahead of kick-off after missing the defeat to Millwall in London. Karlan Grant is expected to miss out with a knee injury. He’s missed the last six matches and has only made three appearances this term so far.
Alex Williams has an ankle injury which could rule him out for the remainder of October while Daryl Dike is a doubt with a thigh injury but could feature before the end of the month.
Tammer Bany is nearing a return from a hamstring problem, according to Ryan Mason. However, the former Tottenham assistant hasn’t yet disclosed an exact date for his return though it’s suspected that later this month is realistic.
West Brom have slowly welcomed Josh Maja back from injury with a series of substitute appearances but it’s now hoped by many supporters that he’ll be ready to play from the start again like they saw against Norwich when he netted the winner.
Preston North End injury news
Pol Valentín misses out due to a muscle injury and is scheduled to return later this month. The Spaniard is joined in the treatment room by midfielder Jordan Thompson, a summer signing from Stoke City. Long-serving midfielder Brad Potts is expected to miss out with a muscle injury along with former Manchester United forward Will Keane.
Robbie Brady misses out with a calf injury which rules him out until November. Meanwhile, defender Josh Seary has been ruled out with a knee injury.
Preston last faced West Brom on New Years Day and were beaten 3-1 with a Josh Maja brace and Callum Styles deciding the clash. Ryan Ledson, now of Huddersfield Town, scored the only goal for the visitors on that occasion, it was one of just four strikes he managed in the Championship for the Lillywhites.