Steve Bruce says members of his squad are “chomping at the bit” to play against Sheffield United in the Carabao Cup first round.
Albion host Paul Heckingbottom’s Blades in an all-Sky Bet Championship affair at The Hawthorns on Thursday night (ko 8pm).
And the boss believes the game presents a good chance to get through to the next stage of the competition, as well as provide some of his key players with valuable minutes.
“We’re looking forward to being back at The Hawthorns again and building on an encouraging start to the season in the league,” said Bruce.
“One-off cup matches always provide a bit of excitement, and they’re something different to focus on away from the Championship.
“It’s a great chance for us to test ourselves against another decent opposition in Sheffield United - and make no mistake, we’ll be putting out a team that’s capable of winning the game.
“I’ve got lads in my squad who are chomping at the bit to be involved and can count themselves unfortunate not to have featured in the league as much as they would have liked.
“Okay Yokuslu got around 15 minutes under his belt the other night and this is a perfect opportunity for him to play. We also need to get Callum Robinson on the pitch after his spell out injured.
“Alex Palmer, Kyle Bartley, Adam Reach, Alex Mowatt and Taylor Gardner-Hickman, these are all good players who are going to do everything they can to impress.
“We know it’s only a few days since our last home match so we’re grateful for our supporters who will be back again. Our aim is to reward them with another enjoyable night under the lights.”
