Kyle Bartley may face a fight to get back into the West Brom side after Ryan Mason’s ‘difficult’ admission
Kyle Bartley is yet to feature for West Brom this season and the longer that goes on, the more concerned he will be.
Bartley underwent surgery in the summer to fix a recurring knee problem and hasn’t had the chance to show Ryan Mason what he is made of.
The centre-back is West Brom’s longest-serving player and captain of the side. That could be coming to an end though after Mason’s recent admission.
Ryan Mason may prefer other options ahead of Kyle Bartley
Mason has impressed the West Brom players this season as he lays out his vision for the club.
His summer spending has seen the Baggies sign two new centre-backs, including a ‘great pick-up’ in George Campbell.
That won’t help Bartley, who has other new signing Nat Phillips as well as current options Torbjorn Heggem and Caleb Taylor to compete with and Mason admitted that the older players have a mountain to climb when recovering from injuries.
He told the Express and Star: “It’s just respecting his body and understanding that the older you get it can take more time to get going again.
“It’s a long off-season that we had and we’re just trying to build him up and get strength into his legs.”
Kyle Bartley can still be of use to Ryan Mason
Game time might be less frequent than usual for Bartley but that doesn’t mean to say that he can’t be of use at the Hawthorns.
A younger, fresher generation are coming through at West Brom and they are more likely to play week-in-week-out.
Despite that, they will still need guidance and reassurance and the 31-year-old could be the perfect mentor.
The gruelling demands of the Championship season mean that Bartley will still be called upon at some points but perhaps less frequently than usual.
Only two teams scored fewer goals in the top half of the Championship table last season and West Brom know a few extra on top could be the difference between a play-off place or not.
Mason was hoping to add another name to his ranks and has heard back from one of his primary targets following rumours of talks.
