BBC NEWS: West Brom ace was in the TOTY alongside Eze & Watkins, now he’s unemployed.

 

West Bromwich Albion return to Championship play with two away games, which might benefit Carlos Corberan’s team in their quest to win again.

The Baggies have three wins from their four away games this season, but they will be concerned if their form continues to deteriorate, with no triumphs in their previous three second-tier games.

Corberan will hope his men have enough to defeat Oxford United nonetheless, as they seek to continue accumulating points in their quest to reach the Premier League.

If they do make it, it will be interesting to see who is brave enough to adjust to the massive increase in quality, with one former Baggies player struggling in the top flight despite being a high EFL performance.

Romaine Sawyers’ move to West Bromwich

Romaine Sawyers, once a promising teenager at the Hawthorns, left the club in 2013 to establish a name for himself elsewhere.

He definitely succeeded with this goal, as Sawyers rapidly established himself as an exciting offensive player for Walsall and Brentford. Both were managed by Dean Smith at the time, and the former Aston Villa manager clearly admired the player.

Sawyers, who had seven assists in Championship play for the Bees in 2018/19, was noticed by his old employers for his ability to break down defenses with great through balls, such as the one shown above.

West Brom paid £2.9 million to re-sign their former starlet, indicating Slaven Bilic’s ambition for promotion.

Unfortunately, Sawyers’ return to where it all began would not be the most impressive of his career, as he failed to perform at his best for the Baggies over the course of two seasons.

Sawyers’ Return to West Brom

The former West Brom number 19 has only one goal and one assist in 64 first-team appearances in the West Midlands. His career at the club began to unravel after promotion to the top division.

Despite never aggressively taking the bull by the horns, Sawyers earned a berth in the PFA Championship Team of the Year for 2020 with his quiet but occasionally elegant performances, while Bilic led the team to a second-place finish from the dugout.

As you can see above, Sawyers was in good company in becoming an outstanding TOTY, with England internationals Ollie Watkins and Ben White among the team members.

Unlike the now-famous partnership, Sawyers struggled to adjust to the highest competition, failing to score or assist in 19 games.

Sawyers was unable to play for the first team due to Bilic’s replacement, Sam Allardyce, and had to rely on U21 games to get experience.

In the end, his time faded out in the Midlands with his contract let to expire two years ago. Right now, Sawyers finds himself without a club having departed Cardiff during the summer.