West Bromwich Albion will continue their preparations for their 2023-24 Championship campaign with a pre-season friendly against League outfit Cheltenham Town on Tuesday night.
The Baggies finished ninth in the Championship last season, three points off the playoffs, while Cheltenham were 16th in League One in 2022-23, nine points outside of the relegation zone.
Match preview
Cheltenham earned promotion from League Two at the end of the 2020-21 campaign, and they have finished 15th and 16th respectively in their last two seasons in the third tier of English football.
The Robins will be hoping to potentially push towards the top half of the division in the coming season, and there have been positive signs during pre-season, winning each of their opening three friendlies.
Indeed, Wade Elliott's side beat Evesham United 4-2 and Swindon Supermarine 6-0 before recording a 2-1 victory over Weston-super-Mare on Saturday afternoon.
Cheltenham have another two friendlies confirmed for this summer against West Brom and Bristol City before facing Shrewsbury Town in their League One opener on August 5.
The Robins have made four signings during the summer market, bringing in Luke Southwood, Curtis Davies, Jamie Pardington and Rob Street, while Reece Hutchinson has returned from a loan spell at Sligo Rovers.
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West Brom, meanwhile, finished ninth in the Championship last season, three points behind sixth-placed Sunderland, so they will once again be present in the second tier in 2023-24.
The Baggies have been absent from the Premier League since their relegation in 2020-21, finishing 10th and ninth respectively in their last two seasons back in the Championship.
Carlos Corberan's side will be expecting to push high up the division next season, but they are yet to make a first-team signing during the summer market, which is somewhat of a surprise.
West Brom started their preparations for the 2023-24 campaign with a 3-1 victory over Shrewsbury on Saturday, and they are now preparing for friendlies against Cheltenham, Salford City, Burton Albion, Bolton Wanderers and Forest Green Rovers ahead of their Championship opener.
The Baggies will head to Blackburn Rovers on the first weekend of the new campaign, while they have another tough away match on August 8, facing Stoke City in the first round of the EFL Cup.
Team News
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Davies and Street both scored their first goals for Cheltenham in the team's 2-1 win over Weston-super-Mare last time out, and the pair should continue in the XI here.
Head coach Elliott decided to keep with the same side for 75 minutes before making wholesale changes, and it is thought that he will have a similar plan for this match.
Freddie Wilcox made a positive impression in the team's last match, and the 17-year-old could keep hold of his starting role for Tuesday's contest.
As for West Brom, head coach Corberan made full use of his squad against Shrewsbury on Saturday, and that is again expected to be the case for this pre-season contest.
Conor Townsend opened the scoring in the friendly last time out and should retain his spot in the starting side, while Jed Wallace and Adam Reach should also keep hold of their roles in the XI.
It is likely that Corberan will select two different sides for each half, but there will be no Karlan Grant, as the forward has left the club to make the move to Cardiff City on loan.
Cheltenham Town possible starting lineup:
Harris; Long, Bradbury, Davies, Horton, Williams; Chapman, Willcox, Adshead; Street, Lloyd
West Bromwich Albion possible starting lineup:
Palmer; Ingram, Ajayi, Kipre, Townsend; Gardner-Hickman, Yokuslu; Wallace, Swift, Reach; Malcolm
We say: Cheltenham Town 1-2 West Bromwich Albion
Both teams will view this match as a good test at this stage of their respective preparations, and we are expecting a competitive game on Tuesday. West Brom will be able to call upon the superior quality all across the field, though, and we are backing the Baggies to triumph in the pre-season friendly.
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Matt Law
