The West Bromwich Albion forward impressed as a substitute against Manchester United.
Jay Rodriguez has endured much misfortune with injuries in recent seasons and the attacker is evidently still trying to get his career back on track following his summer switch to West Bromwich Albion.
Rodriguez, who can play on either flank, behind the striker, or up front, has shown some tantalising glimpses of his ability at West Brom, yet he has found it rather difficult to perform consistently.
The 28-year-old found the net against Stoke City and Manchester City earlier in the campaign but has now gone seven Premier League appearances without scoring.
Having started frequently earlier in the campaign, Rodriguez is no longer an automatic pick under new manager Alan Pardew and has featured as a substitute in West Brom’s last two Premier League games, the draw with Liverpool and the defeat to Manchester United.
In the latter fixture Rodriguez made an impressive cameo appearance as he helped to cause uncertainty in the United defence in the closing stages of the game, with West Brom coming close to taking a point.
There is a growing feeling that Rodriguez, who is still trying to reach full sharpness after his injury nightmare, is more effective as an impact player, given that he can cause problems for tiring defences.
If Rodriguez is mainly used as a substitute then it would enable Pardew to make use of James McClean’s pace and could make West Brom a more direct attacking threat.
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