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West Bromwich Albion head coach Ryan Mason was full of praise for Manchester United loanee Toby Collyer and the midfielder’s attitude.
Collyer seals loan move to West Brom
Collyer completed a loan move to West Brom last week. United confirmed that the player will spend the 2025/26 season with the Baggies, where he will gain significant first-team experience.
The transfer represents Collyer’s first temporary spell away from United since joining the Red Devils’ academy in 2022 from Brighton and Hove Albion.
Collyer enjoyed a rapid rise in the youth ranks at Carrington, culminating in the 13 first-team appearances he made last term, including his admirable Premier League debut against Liverpool last September.
The 21-year-old would have likely played a lot more but three separate injuries caused him to miss a huge chunk of the campaign.
Amidst stiff competition for places and with United on the hunt for a midfielder, it became clear that Collyer would struggle for minutes if he remained at Old Trafford.
Collyer himself admitted as much when he confirmed his desire to go away on loan and prove himself.
He made his debut for West Brom over the weekend as they beat Wrexham 3-2 at STōK Racecourse. Collyer came on for the final three minutes plus stoppage time as his side made it two wins from two.
Mason waxes lyrical about Collyer
Despite only featuring for a very limited period, Mason revealed that he has already been impressed with Collyer’s work ethic and dedication.
Mason told the Daily Mail, “Good kid, humble, wants to work, wants to be part of it and you can feel that as soon as you speak to him.”
“He wants to play football, loves football, and that’s super important. We want those types of people in the building who want to work, put in the work, and be part of something.”
“I think there is loads of room and loads of growth for him to develop. I know he’s flexible and can play different positions. I know that we’ve got quite a bit of flexibility between our attacking play and our midfielders, different players who can do different things.”
“He’s probably going to have different roles at different times. Today, he replaced Isaac [Price] and had a bit of a higher role, but there will be times where he will be a bit lower and we will be expecting and demanding different things from him.”
Mason added, “Most importantly he’s going to work hard. He’s part of a group, part of a team and a football club that wants to help him and if we can help him then I’m sure he can help us.”
West Brom are back in action on Saturday when they host Portsmouth at the Hawthorns. Collyer will certainly be hoping to be named in the starting XI.
Feature image Alex Pantling via Getty Images
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