Play-off second leg: Southampton v West Brom: Lewis Cox & Jonny Drury preview

Express & Star

Jonny Drury and Lewis Cox sit down to preview Albion's play-off semi-final second leg trip to Southampton. The boys reflect on Carlos Corberan's press conference and the mood in the Albion camp heading to the South Coast. They also talk Josh Maja, penalty practice and team selections.

Transcript

00:00My name is Jonny Drury. I am here alongside Albion correspondent Lewis Coxey. Very excited

00:12Albion correspondent Lewis Cox as he fills up the car, sorts the tyres out, puts more

00:17petrol in, gets ready for the long-haul jaunt to Southampton tomorrow as Albion take on

00:23Southampton in the second leg of the Championship playoffs. Coxey, you were down at the Albion

00:28training base yesterday to chat to Carlos Corberan. How was he? He's been talking about

00:34penalty shoot-outs, he's been talking about various bits and bobs. What was the mood like

00:38in the Albion camp yesterday? He was good, Jonny. First of all, you do know me too well

00:44by knowing that I need to fill up my car, so that's a bit concerning. But yeah, long-haul

00:49trip tomorrow, looking forward to it. I mean, this is it, isn't it? This is literally it.

00:56The presser was great. It was a really good one. Good number of interest there in terms

01:01of broadcasts, in terms of national coverage. So yeah, that was really good. Carlos Corberan

01:07was in great spirits, actually. He's probably one of the, I don't know, all of these pressers

01:13I find interesting and enjoyable, but probably the most sort of, I don't know, involved and

01:19sort of enjoyable he came across in a presser for a little while. So he was in good spirits,

01:24I think. And yeah, penalty shoot-outs I've just written up today, and I know a few Baggies

01:31fans have had their say online about that, and the record's not the best from the penalty

01:35spot, but hopefully we don't get there, eh, tomorrow night, Jonny? Huge, huge occasion,

01:40huge test, isn't it? Southampton were favourites in this tie-fall stop. Before the first leg

01:46there, I suppose their favourites tag has just increased now, despite 0-0. They'll have

01:51that home back in. I mean, whether they'll get the sort of volume and occasion that happened

01:57at the Hawthorns last Sunday, I don't know. However, it's clearly going to be mostly towards

02:04the hosts. So I've got a lot to contend with, to try and either quieten that crowd down

02:09or make it nervy early doors, just stay in the game. I think that I've spoke with enough

02:13people around the club, outside the club, fans, over the last week or two, that have

02:19optimism for tomorrow night, that have some confidence and belief. That was something

02:23I asked Carlos Corbin about, actually, yesterday. Can you just assess your squad's confidence

02:29and belief that they can win this tie and get to Wembley? And he spoke interestingly

02:33on those kind of things. We've got plenty from the Albion head coach coming in the morning

02:37for supporters to read, hopefully when they're travelling down there or just ready to watch

02:42on their TV screens. Yeah, it's exciting, isn't it? I can't wait to get down there.

02:48Obviously, somewhere we've been already this season, we've seen two defeats in the regular

02:54league campaign and they were tough, but further buoyed really by last Sunday. I thought Albion

03:00more than matched the opposition and showed they can be there to be got at, to be honest,

03:06and showed that they can keep a clean sheet, can defend well against them.

03:12Something else discussed at the presser, all Southampton created really were some little

03:15moments of Albion errors, weren't they? Tom Fellows getting caught on the ball,

03:19other one came directly from Albion's attack with Dean Garner's best chance. So,

03:24rock-solid Albion. Let's hope they're back. Let's hope they can be ready for one more

03:27clean sheet and it'll just be quite the night if it goes Albion's way, won't it? Quite the

03:32weekend down there. What a setting on the south coast and just everything crossed for it, obviously.

03:38He rarely gives a lot away in terms of his team selection, but did he speak about various

03:42bits and bobs? Obviously, fans are weighing with baited breath on having more attacking options

03:47in Josh Madger available. What did the head coach give away or not give away on that?

03:51Well, there's nothing fresh in terms of new injury concerns. What I would say is,

03:57it was quite enlightening after the first game and I wrote that up this week. Hopefully,

04:02Baggies fans will have read about it. In just saying, look, squad's quite tired, to be honest,

04:08after the first leg. The subs that were made requested to come off. I've heard that Mikey

04:14Johnson's playing through an element of pain and managing that and still looking a threat. But

04:20Carlos said that the calibre of the opposition, the fact we're into the 50th game, I think that

04:26was, we're into May extended season. Squad are tired and creaking and a lot of them have played

04:31a lot of games, haven't they? You think of the ones that came off, the ones who were struggling,

04:37we saw Bartley struggle, a furlong struggle, Lukaku came off, Townsend came off. All the

04:42players that played a lot of football and obviously the sense of occasion.

04:45Possibly caught up with weary limbs last Sunday and that's going to be a factor again. The

04:50temperature, of course, was another thing Corbyn referenced last time out. A bit cooler now,

04:54isn't it? Thankfully. It's not the walking wounded, but it's just the squad are feeling it.

05:03To be fair, that will be the same for Southampton, won't it? That has to be said.

05:06It's the same for both and it's about digging deep, I guess, and seeing the prize on the line,

05:11visiting Wembley, obviously. But yeah, nothing fresh in terms of an injury that's going to rule

05:17anyone out. And you're right, Josh Madger is, was, still is the talking point. Certainly was

05:24at the Hawthorns last Sunday when the team news dropped an hour before kickoff and he was left

05:28out of the 20-man squad. I mean, obviously we know he's not been a starter since any of those

05:32injuries. He's not likely to be a starter in the playoffs, but I think we all expected him to be on

05:36the bench ready to pop up to hopefully convert one from in the box if Albin need a goal. Obviously,

05:42Corbyn said to me afterwards that he wasn't physically ready to compete in a game that

05:46magnitude of the first tie. And he has trained this week fine, Madger. And Corbyn just makes

05:53his decision now. Doesn't he? He weighs up the pros and cons of Madger on the bench or not.

05:58For me, yeah, okay. If I buy into the argument of him not being ready in that first leg,

06:02for me in the second leg, when it's do or die, when it's a one game shootout,

06:06you just have him on the bench. Yeah. Even if he's at 60, 70% for me. Yeah. Okay. If I buy into the

06:12argument of him not being ready in that first leg for me in the second leg, when it's do or die,

06:16when it's a one game shootout, you just have him on the bench. Yeah. Even if it's at 60, 70%,

06:21almost like what is there to lose? Even if it comes on and it doesn't work and he picks up a

06:26little problem and so be it. It's the last game, isn't it? Do or die. Hopefully he comes on if he's

06:32needed and can bobble one in off his shin or something. He's a goal scorer, isn't he? He's

06:39going to be between the sticks. So yeah, I mean, I've done a couple of pieces and said on the

06:43podcast this week, Johnny, that I think you agree in terms of starting Jed Wallace up top for this

06:49one just to hopefully exploit Southampton like Albin did when they were at Leicester not so long

06:54ago. And hopefully then with Maggio, with Thomas Assante as well, the other striker, you have

07:01striking goal scoring options to come off the bench, maybe together, maybe separately if you

07:05really need a goal. I think Wallace could do a real threat to the Saints back line.

07:09But in terms of Maggio, yeah, he's trained. He's got a chance, I suppose, just as he had a chance

07:14last time. But for me, this being the second leg, this being what it's all on, in my mind,

07:19there's only one decision, really, and it's just to have him there as an extra firepower.

07:22Andy Wightman isn't really around. He didn't come on last weekend, hasn't played for a long,

07:28long time. He's a lone player that isn't really going to be out. Maggio's your player. Let's just

07:34get the ball rolling and make it happen. That's how I see it. But it'll be interesting. I think

07:39the big call is who goes up front. I'd be amazed if, yeah, to be honest, I'd be amazed if any of

07:44the other back four, centre midfield, two, if the three behind the striker and fellows doing

07:49Johnson, changed, really. I can only see that swap with Wallace Thomas Asante.

07:55Yeah, I guess we'll see tomorrow evening on that one.

Category

Transcript

Recommended