West Brom boss Carlos Corberan was full of praise for striker Brandon Thomas-Asante after his two goals helped earn the Baggies a 4-1 win over Blackburn.
The hosts were three up inside 33 minutes thanks to a Tom Fellows effort, an own goal by Dominic Hyam and a Thomas-Asante strike.
Jake Garrett pulled a goal back for Blackburn after 60 minutes, but Thomas-Asante soon restored the hosts’ three-goal advantage.
West Brom cement fifth position, five points clear of sixth place, whilst Blackburn drop to 18th in the table and are winless in six league games.
Corberan, whose side strengthened their position in fifth, said of Thomas-Asante’s display: “Excellent, not only for the goals but the way he was linking the play and how he was helping the team build attacks.
“The most important thing with Brandon is his mentality and his physical condition to play and always be ready to help the team.
“The most important moment is every game he plays with us and today he was able to help the team with the goals that he scored.”
The afternoon saw the return of key players John Swift, Adam Reach and Jed Wallace for West Brom and Corberan was delighted to have the trio back after injury lay-offs.
“I liked a lot the contribution of Reach, I think he was perfect for the type of game we wanted to play today,” the head coach said.
“His contribution in defending was very important too.
“To have all your fullest squad is one of the key points in the Championship.”
Blackburn boss Jon Dahl Tomasson admitted it was a bad day at the office for his side, who have now conceded the most goals in the Championship
“We need to accept it was not a good day,” he said. “We knew coming here with the quality of West Brom it would be a tough task. I thought we started the game well, but I was disappointed in the manner we gave the goals away.
“We gave three set-piece goals away today. When Garrett scored an excellent goal in the second half we had a chance to get back in the game, but we conceded immediately.
“The only thing I was pleased with today was to give Sam Gallagher minutes who’s been out for four months.”
Tomasson feels his side are too easy to score against at the moment.
“When you look at the whole play, I thought we were just as good as West Brom, but games are won in each box in the way you defend,” he said.
“Are you winning your duels, are you winning your personal duels, the first and second contact, are you smelling danger all those things? Football is won in each box and we need to do better.”
Giroud leaving Milan to join MLS at end of season
Olivier Giroud announced he will be leaving Milan to join the MLS at the end of the season when his contract expires.
The Frenchman joined the club in July 2021 from Chelsea, winning the Serie A title in his first season.
Giroud has scored 48 goals in 130 games in all competitions for Milan, netting 16 of those this season to help them to a second-place finish.
In an emotional interview with the club’s media channels, Giroud said: "I'm here to tell you that the next two games will be my last for Milan. My career will continue in MLS.
"I'm very proud of everything I've done here at Milan across three seasons. It's the right time to announce it. I'm a bit emotional. My story with Milan ends this season, but Milan will forever remain in my heart."
Though Giroud did not confirm which team he would be joining in the MLS, previous reports suggested he could be moving to LAFC to link up with his France international team-mate, Hugo Lloris.
Giroud leaving Milan at end of season to join MLS
Olivier Giroud announced he will be leaving Milan to join the MLS at the end of the season when his contract expires.
The Frenchman joined the club in July 2021 from Chelsea, winning the Serie A title in his first season.
Giroud has scored 48 goals in 130 games in all competitions for Milan, netting 16 of those this season to help them to a second-place finish.
In an emotional interview with the club’s media channels, Giroud said: "I'm here to tell you that the next two games will be my last for Milan. My career will continue in MLS.
"I'm very proud of everything I've done here at Milan across three seasons. It's the right time to announce it. I'm a bit emotional. My story with Milan ends this season, but Milan will forever remain in my heart."
Though Giroud did not confirm which team he would be joining in the MLS, previous reports suggested he could be moving to LAFC to link up with his France international team-mate, Hugo Lloris.
Beckham: Man Utd's problems have lasted 'too long'
David Beckham believes Manchester United’s issues have lasted "too long" since Alex Ferguson’s retirement in 2013.
The Red Devils have won just four major trophies since Ferguson’s departure, with their most recent – an EFL Cup win last season – ending a six-year wait for silverware.
United have not won a Premier League title since the Scot’s final season in charge, with six managers failing to reclaim the top-flight crown since then.
This season, Erik ten Hag’s side are at risk of recording their lowest league finish and points tally, as they sit eighth on 54 points with two games remaining.
Beckham, who won 13 trophies, including six Premier League titles and the Champions League, told The Athletic: "I think it has been a difficult time over the last five or ten years, but it was always going to be when the boss left the club.
"It wasn’t just that, we lost players like Ryan Giggs, Roy Keane and Gary Neville, all of these players that had been at United for so long; you lose part of that, and you lose part of the club.
"So it was always going to be a difficult time. But we’d like it to change pretty quickly because I think it’s gone on for too long now."
United have lost 19 games in all competitions this season, their most since 1977-78 (also 19), with nine of those coming at Old Trafford – their joint-most at home in a season and the first time it has happened in the Premier League.
Their 1-0 defeat to Arsenal on Sunday marked the first time they had conceded in 10 successive games in all competitions since October 2021, while the 82 goals they have let in this season is their most since 1970-71 (also 82).
Beckham was speaking at the premiere of 99, the Amazon Prime documentary covering United’s iconic treble-winning season 25 years ago.
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