West Brom's Grady Diangana told to 'improve performances"
Valerien Ismael says Albion aren’t getting the impact they expect from Grady Diangana – with the boss telling the forward his performances must improve.
Diangana was sensational for the Baggies throughout the 2019/20 promotion-winning campaign but he has struggled for form ever since Albion agreed to sign the winger on a permanent basis from West Ham – in a deal potentially worth £18million.
Ismael still believes Diangana has the potential to be one of the best players in the Championship.
But he says Albion need more from him, with the 23-year-old having scored just one goal and registered one assist this season.
“At the minute with Grady it’s not enough,” Ismael said.
“He knows he needs to raise the bar. He has quality, he has shown his quality, we believe in him. But at the minute we are not getting the impact we expected from him.
“And at some point you need to assess the situation, to be clear and be ruthless in our decision making because we need performances from the player.
“Grady in normal form, I think he is one of the best players in the league and in our squad for sure.
“But at some point it’s all about the result, whether that’s performances, assists, or goals. That is what earns you your money.
“I know he is unhappy with his performances. He is trying everything to be back.
“We believe in him. We will try everything to bring him back on the right path.”
Speaking after the defeat at QPR last weekend, Ismael was critical of his options from the bench – with the boss saying Daryl Dike was the only player he could call on to make a difference despite Diangana also being a sub.
And the boss says Albion need Diangana back to his best so he can influence games as a starter and as a substitute.
“Having only Dike on the bench (at QPR) was not enough,” the Frenchman continued.
“As a manager you are able to win a game with a change – if you have a second or a third one you have the possibility to win the game, especially when it’s a 50/50 game.
“We saw with Dike we got that second wind to get back in the game, to create chances, to force the opponent to be more aware.
“But at some point we needed a second player to be able to come on and make a difference.
“That is what we are seeking at the minute.
“With Grady, we have all seen the skills and the quality he can bring.
“But at some point I have to make a decision on what is best for the squad.
“The player needs to make it difficult for me, if he makes it difficult for me to pick the starting XI then we are on the right way.
“If it’s easy for me to pick the starting XI then something is wrong.
“We believe in Grady. But at some point he needs to show up and take responsibility.”
