Carlos Corberan keen to reward Josh Griffiths with experience among West Brom first team
Albion are ready to hand highly-rated goalkeeper Josh Griffiths the chance to make his mark on the first-team squad.
Griffiths, 21, was this week recalled from a season-long loan at League One outfit Portsmouth as Baggies boss Carlos Corberan exercised the option to do so in his deal.
The academy graduate, who already boasts more than 100 career games from EFL stints at Cheltenham, Lincoln and Pompey, played 28 games during the first half of the campaign at Fratton Park. He managed eight clean sheets.
Interim boss Simon Bassey today revealed Pompey shock at Griffiths' recall and said the youngster is disappointed.
Corberan explained he had held talks with goalkeeper coach Gary Walsh and Albion have decided to reward Griffiths' latest stint with a chance to impress in training and force his way into the head coach's plans.
"We have strengthened the squad by adding him to the group of players," Corberan said of Griffiths.
"He's someone who is young, he had the first part of the season in Portsmouth, having the experience of games in League One and having it in the cup – the last game was at Tottenham away, that was a very good experience.
"Now we understand, talking to the goalkeeper coach [Gary Walsh] and talking with the club that now is the moment to bring him back, to be in the dressing room, to allow me to work closely with him, to know him better. It's one thing to watch him on the TV, but it's another thing to have the human contact with the players."
Griffiths, who is from Hereford and has been at the club since aged 10, is a well-thought of prospect at The Hawthorns.
He is unable to feature in next week's FA Cup third round replay against Chesterfield at The Hawthorns due to being cup-tied having featured for Pompey, notably at The Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, where Harry Kane netted the winner.
Corberan's current No.1 Alex Palmer is another Baggies academy graduate, which means two of the club's three first-team keepers have progressed through the youth ranks.
Albion hope time around the senior squad will help the 21-year-old develop further and it remains to be seen whether he can push David Button as Palmer's deputy later on this season.
Corberan hopes Griffiths can take a leaf out of Palmer's book and thrive at the club after a series of loans. Palmer ousted Button as first-choice earlier this term.
"We have strengthened the squad by bringing him back to the club, because he is someone that maybe has played the minutes well enough, now we need to give him a different type of experience that is going to allow him to grow in a different situation," added the Spaniard.
"You grow when you're playing, when you're adapting to the needs of the team, Portsmouth were playing in one way – we are now going to try and develop our style and to allow him to have the contact with some of the behaviours that we have here.
"It'll help him to keep growing, even if he doesn't have the minutes that he was having previously. The same situation happened with Alex Palmer last year. He came back in the second part of the season and he was working, sometimes it's a positive for the future of the player."
Corberan confirmed fellow academy goalkeeper Ted Cann, 22, who was acting as the club's number three keeper while Griffiths was at Portsmouth, will be sent out on loan to gain experience.
