West Brom urged to eye Preston North End star amid Josh Maja news | OneFootball

With Josh Maja out injured for several weeks, FLW's West Brom fan pundit believes the club must sign a new striker this month and drops two names.

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more...

West Brom are solid contenders for the Championship play-offs this season.

Since the start of the season, the Baggies, have competed at the top end of the table as their quest for promotion back to the Premier League continues.

Currently, West Brom are without a manager, after Carlos Corberan departed for Valencia, so this next appointment could be absolutely crucial in the Championship play-off race.

The Baggies sit 6th in the table at this moment in time, but are at risk of falling out of the play-offs, as Blackburn sit one point behind them with a game in hand.

Also, West Brom were recently hit with another huge blow, as star striker, Josh Maja, suffered a lower leg injury, and will be out for 'several weeks' as confirmed by West Brom themselves.

This is the worst-case scenario for the Baggies, as they have heavily relied on Maja for his goals this season, and he has started every league game up until now.

West Brom fan urges the club to sign a new striker

FLW's West Brom fan pundit, Callum Burgess, suggests that the Baggies should already have been looking at forward options, but the need for a striker is even more crucial now without Maja.

"Even prior to Josh Maja's injury, I believe that Albion should have been heading into the transfer market to get a new striker to help ease the workload. With Maja playing near enough at least 80 minutes in every single game since the start of the season, undoubtedly that would have played its part in him suffering his injury, which sees him out until Spring at the very earliest."

"Daryl Dike is close to returning from another long-term injury, so that will be a very good sight to see when he's able to start rejoining first-team action, but Albion definitely need to get another striker."

"You can't expect Daryl Dike to be picking up the majority of the minutes that Maja was playing as it's not fair on him."

"You've got Grant who can play up front and Devante Cole who has not impressed since he signed in the summer, so I'd definitely expect Albion to get a new striker."

"It depends on how much funds will be available. I think a loan might be the most expected option. Ali Al-Hamadi might be someone we look at from Ipswich Town if he's available, but he's currently their back-up so I think they'll need to sign someone first."

"With six months left on his deal, I think Emil Riis Jakobsen from Preston North End would probably be my choice to see if Albion could get him on a cut-price deal."

"He scored against Albion at Deepdale in November, I think, and he's a proven Championship striker who has got a decent goal record in a team that has not really created many chances over the years."

Emil Riis would be a good signing for West Brom

As Callum mentioned, Riis has just six months left on his contract, so Preston may be open to selling him this January in order to prevent losing him on a free in the summer.

The Dane has been a crucial player for Preston North End over the last few years, so is absolutely no stranger to scoring goals in the Championship. So far this season, he has contributed to nine league goals, while Preston struggle for consistency in the bottom half of the table.

A move to West Brom would be an improvement for the striker, so it is hard to imagine that he will turn it down. The number nine role at the Hawthorns is currently open for several weeks while Maja sits on the sidelines, so Riis could come in and immediately take that spot and help West Brom finish inside the play-offs.