West Brom manager Darren Moore has handed rarely-seen winger Oliver Burke a lifeline at the club despite the arrival of Bakary Sako acting as a blow to his hopes of a first team return.
The 21-year-old has featured for just 14 minutes in the Championship this season in the opening game of the season, dropping to an unused substitute for the next six matches before being completely left out of the side for the last three.
However, despite falling down the pecking order, with Sako’s arrival threatening to push him down yet another rung on the ladder, Moore has confirmed he has plans for the youngster.
He told the Birmingham Mail: “It’s a really tough gruelling season ahead and we’ve got a busy period coming up and we’ve still got the FA Cup too. When you look at that, it’s still a long way to go and we need to call upon our squad of players.
“In terms of those two players (Burke and Sako), they’re in the thick of the squad. I want them fit so if called upon they’re ready. Oli Burke has got a bright future ahead of him, and there’s lots of work to be done. He’s a wonderful player, a good man, we’re working hard together.
“He’ll be the first to say there are parts of his game starting to improve and long may that continue. There is lots of education to be done, because one so young, he’s learning a lot. He’s got a team of coaches around him giving him all those learning aspects of the game. It’s good to see signs of improvement which is great to see.”
Opinion
Moore might truly have plans for Burke before the season is out but the truth of the matter is he is not part of the squad right now, and Sako’s arrival suggests that the need for a new winger was too great to ignore for the Baggies. It might well be that Burke has to settle for minutes here and there before the January window opens, where the best move for all parties involved would be to secure him a loan exit somewhere he is going to play regular first team football. That should get his confidence – which is likely to have been shot to pieces over the last couple of months – back to where it should be and then he might be able to prove to Moore that he deserves a place in the senior squad at the Hawthorns. The manager has been pretty kind with what he has had to say about Burke here, but as the old adage goes, actions speak louder than words, and his exclusion couple with Sako’s signing screams of a struggle for the youngster.