Interviews

Tau available for Newport Cup tie

The South Africa international could make his Albion debut on Sunday.

By Charlie Hanson • 08 January 2021

By Paul Hazlewood
Percy Tau could make his Albion debut this Sunday.

Percy Tau has been registered in time to play in this Sunday's Emirates FA Cup third round match at Newport County.

The 26-year-old could make his long-awaited debut against the League Two side, having been recalled from a season-long loan with Belgian club Anderlecht.

Graham Potter would be happy to throw the South Africa international into the action, given that he's played a decent amount of football during his time in Belgium.

“He's available,” the Albion head coach said. “He's been training and playing in Belgium, so he's okay in terms of match speed and training time. It's just a case of him adapting to us.

“It's exciting for him and it's exciting for us. Now we need to help him settle in. He needs to get to know his teammates and the team. We want to help him take the next step in his career and that's also the challenge for him.

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Potter's Newport press conference

“But I think he will adapt quickly from what I saw in training. He has a nice personality and has fitted into the group already.

“There's healthy competition in the team which you'd expect in the Premier League, but that's good for us, we need that.”

In terms of what he can offer Albion, Potter reckons Tau has plenty at his disposal.

“He's a left-footed attacking player. He plays in different positions, he attacks the goal, he progresses with the ball, he plays in spaces.

“He is able to find passes and dribble with the ball. It's just a case of us finding the best way to use him.”