As Mikey Johnston continues to shine for the Baggies, the club must regret not including an option to buy in the loan deal In a pulsating contest where the Baggies were mostly second best, Carlos Corberan’s men had Alex Palmer and Darnell Furlong to thank for gaining a point, with the West Brom shot-stopper saving a penalty while the former QPR man Furlong cleared acrobatically off the line in the closing stages. Cedric Kipre was also involved in a goal line clearance and appeared to use his hand to turn the ball over the crossbar, but referee Geoff Eltringham was unable to spot any infringement. Norwich City’s defeat away to Middlesbrough means the Black Country outfit now have a five-point cushion inside the top six ahead of the Canaries, with just 10 games remaining. Despite dealing with limited financial resources prior to Shilen Patel’s completed takeover of the club, Albion’s recruitment during the January transfer window has helped bolster the attacking areas of the squad and maintained their promotion ambitions heading into the final run-in. On-loan Celtic man Mikey Johnston has been particularly impressive at The Hawthorns since his arrival and West Brom may now regret not including an option to buy in his loan deal if he can continue his hot streak in front of goal.
Johnston was recruited into B71 after the unexpected departure of Jeremy Sarmiento to Ipswich Town, and he’s exceeded expectations during his stint so far. The 24-year-old has managed to settle into life in the second tier with complete ease and has showed promising signs of what’s to come for the remainder of the campaign. The Glasgow-born wideman has the ability to glide away from players with his close control and blistering pace, and favours cutting inside to create a chance or unleash a dangerous strike with his stronger right foot. With these qualities, Johnston has added goals to his games in a blue and white shirt, kicking off his Baggies career with an assured finish against Cardiff City from inside the box. The Celtic would then register carbon copy strikes against Plymouth Argyle and Coventry City, nutmegging his marker before rifling each effort into the top right-hand corner. But the Republic of Ireland international would produce his best strike yet against the R’s, pulling them level with a goal of the season contender as he cut in from the left-hand side and powered an unstoppable effort into the near corner off the inside of the post. It’s becoming quite ridiculous how Johnston is managing to pull off such magical efforts in a short period of time, but it takes his total up to four goals for the season from his last six Championship outings. The Albion faithful have been left dazzled in the early stages of Johnston’s spell, with the added source of goals potentially a difference maker to West Brom returning to the Premier League.
It’s safe to say both Celtic and West Brom couldn’t have foreseen Johnston’s instant revelation in the Championship, but the Baggies will now be kicking themselves that they didn’t insert a buy option within the loan deal. Despite investment likely to come in for West Brom from controlling shareholder Patel, Celtic have the choice of demanding whatever fee they like and that will continue to grow if Johnston maintains his excellent form. New West Brom owner Shilen Patel should look to Birmingham City as he tries to avoid making early mistakes following his takeover. With no set fee included in the loan switch, Albion may now miss out on securing the permanent transfer of Johnston for the following campaign, which would be a bitter blow to the club whichever division they find themselves in next season. Johnston’s stunning moment of quality at QPR dragged Albion off the canvas in West London yesterday and was the catalyst for Grady Diangana grabbing a second goal on the night, which ultimately led to the team earning a point. The Glaswegian has already earned Albion crucial results this term with the quality he possesses on the left flank and the prospect of losing him for next season leaves massive boots to fill for any potential replacement.
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