Paddy McNair's West Brom struggles explained as he's unlikely for Middlesbrough reunion

Paddy McNair of West Brom
-Credit: (Image: West Bromwich Albion FC via Getty Images)


Paddy McNair will be unlikely to feature in a potential Middlesbrough reunion with West Brom on Tuesday evening, having struggled to make much of an impact since his summer loan move.

Former Boro man McNair has failed to make the match-day squad for their last three games having joined West Brom on loan until December just before the start of the new season. That followed a deal to join San Diego after his contract expired at Boro.

He will officially move to the MLS in December but is part of the West Brom squad in the meantime. Despite that, his only appearance so far came in a Carabao Cup defeat to Fleetwood. Though not injured, he had a disrupted pre-season and Mason Holgate's arrival on deadline day pushed him down the pecking order.

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With McNair only a temporary squad member for West Brom, Corberan appears to be prioritising his longer-term options. It means McNair will be unlikely to even make the bench when Boro travel to the Hawthorns to take on the table-toppers after his six years at Boro came to an end this summer.

Alex Mowatt is expecting to be fit to start for West Brom though, after returning from injury to come on and score in the second half of the Baggies' defeat to Sheffield Wednesday on Saturday.

Mowatt spent the 2022-23 season on loan at Boro from West Brom but struggled for game-time after Michael Carrick's arrival in the October. Academy graduate Hayden Hackney established himself alongside captain Jonny Howson to restrict Mowatt's chances. Despite that, Mowatt was a popular member of the Boro squad in that time and impressed late on in the season as Howson suffered an injury that ended his campaign early.

With Carlos Corberan appointed at the Hawthorns after Mowatt's move to Boro, the midfielder returned to West Brom last summer and quickly re-established himself there, becoming a key man for Corberan. That's continued this season and he recently scored twice in a victory over Portsmouth, with the Baggies currently top of the Championship despite their weekend defeat.

In a sign of his importance, Mowatt was on the bench on Saturday after only training once during the week because of a groin issue. But with West Brom 2-0 down, Corberan put Mowatt on, with the 29-year-old scoring their second goal as they staged a comeback, only to concede a third after and lose the game.

In a boost to the Baggies as they look to quickly bounce back on Tuesday evening when Boro visit the Hawthorns, Mowatt told the club website after the game: "I felt fine out there in the second half, so hopefully it was just a little niggle in my groin rather than anything serious.

“I only trained with the squad on Friday after training by myself on Thursday. I hadn’t really trained all week so not starting was the gaffer’s choice. I was buzzing to get the equaliser but I’m gutted we’ve lost the game in the end."

American striker Daryl Dike remains a long-term injury absentee for West Brom, but Corberan is otherwise blessed with plenty of options in his squad.