West Bromwich Albion, after an electric start to Championship life this season, have stuttered in their last few matches in the competitive league.
Winless in their last three games now in the second tier, with zero goals scored in their last two hiccups in the division, it will be up to Carlos Corberan to get more out of his troops moving forward after the international break is over and done with.
He will want to get Josh Maja firing on all cylinders again, after the former Sunderland attacker had netted a ridiculous seven strikes in the league, before experiencing a goal drought in his team’s last two league encounters.
He would equally love to have this former Baggies sharp shooter back on the books to share out the goal load if he could, who the West Midlands outfit managed to sell on for a bumper amount in 2019.
Rodriguez's time at West Brom
Jay Rodriguez would join the Hawthorns ranks for an excessive fee too back in 2017, entering the building for a hefty £12m after starring at Southampton in patches.
Rodriguez’s breakout campaign for the Saints would see him bag a mightily impressive 15 Premier League strikes for the South Coast side from 33 league games during the 2013/14 season, before the Baggies would then swoop in for the 6 foot 1 forward’s services three years down the line after he had further matured at St. Mary’s.
He would go on to be a hit in his new location too, with 33 goals picked up from 90 appearances, as his second full season as a Baggie saw him take the Championship by storm.
During the 2018/19 campaign, Rodriguez would singlehandedly try to steer his side to promotion back up to the promised land of the top-flight by registering a sublime 22 strikes from 45 games, alongside the equally potent exploits of Dwight Gayle, only for West Brom to come up short in the playoff mix.
With West Brom agonisingly missing out, the West Midlands outfit must have known that Rodriguez was likely to move on and that they would be powerless to stop a top-flight team from snapping him up.
Burnley would eventually win back their former star in 2019, with the Baggies having to take a hit on the £12m they once splurged out on the towering attacker, as the Clarets sealed a deal worth £10m.
Now, however, that sad decision to offload him for less than his weighty £12m looks to have been the right call, as his value continues to tumble the more his playing days go on.
Rodriguez's value in 2024
According to Football Transfers, the experienced 35-year-old’s value now stands at a far lesser £839k, as his minutes dry up at Turf Moor under the early regime of Scott Parker.
Rodriguez has only started two clashes this season so far for his promotion-chasing side in the league, with zero goals and zero assists also coming his way from his limited minutes on the pitch.
Season
Games played
Goals scored
24/25
6
0
23/24
21
2
22/23
28
10
21/22
29
2
20/21
31
1
19/20
36
8
Sourced by Transfermarkt
Whilst he did start off his time back with the Clarets on a promising footing, with eight goals bagged from 36 games during the 2019/20 season, it’s clear that Rodriguez has lost his way over the last two campaigns, as he begins to fade into the background now under Parker.
Therefore, the Baggies won’t feel too displeased with themselves that they managed to get £10m out of their former star when they did, as the likes of Tom Fellows and Maja attempt to strike fear back into Championship defences moving forward after their recent blip, away from any mention of their ex-number 19.
Once labelled as being an “exceptional” talent by ex-Baggies manager Tony Pulis when discussing his rise up the ranks at Southampton in 2017, the 35-year-old’s playing days do look like they could be up soon, as his current side and his former outfit battle it out to win promotion up to the top-flight.
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