OPINION
When West Brom’s line up was revealed for the first leg of their play-off semi final against Aston Villa there was a lot of surprise to see Rekeem Harper missing not only from the starting XI but from the bench as well.
The 19-year-old has become a mainstay in the side during the second half of the season for the Baggies, including playing every minute of their final three league games, but was forced to watch on from the sidelines as Dean Smith’s men took charge with a 2-1 win at Villa Park.
Manager James Shan, hoping to take the club back to the top flight at the first time of asking in his temporary role, revealed that it was a tactical decision to leave him out – which appears to have backfired.
He told the Express and Star: “It was just down to personnel and selection. We came with a game plan to sit a bit deeper and be a bit more compact and maybe have more of a defensive head on.
“Can Rekeem do that? Of course. But there were other players in his position that I felt were better suited for that role and responsibility. Rak is a powerful young boy, very good in the half-turn and he can play forward.
“He is probably more of an offensive midfield player than one that will sit in and screen and deny.”
Well, 2-1 down at the halfway stage of this two legged tie and with Dwight Gayle out through suspension, something needs to change if the Baggies are going to secure a place at Wembley.
They cannot afford to go gung-ho but at the same time cannot afford to sit back – if they do, Villa will stroll their way to a second successive play-off final.
Harper’s energy and dynamism in the midfield was sorely missed in the first leg and the manager is surely going to pull a u-turn over his exclusion on Tuesday night – as they say, go hard or go home.
His behind-the-scenes admission explains why, rightly or wrongly, Harper was missing for the first 90 minutes of this tie – he is unlikely to make the same mistake twice.