Karlan Grant opens up on West Brom future talks after Cardiff loan
Karlan Grant has revealed he will hold talks with Carlos Corberan on his Albion future in the summer at the end of his loan at Cardiff City.
The Baggies forward was permitted to leave for a season-long loan deal with the Bluebirds last summer as Corberan opted to move for other forwards, as Jeremy Sarmiento arrived on loan and Josh Maja checked in as a free agent.
Grant, 26, has enjoyed a productive stint in south Wales and has made 35 appearances – 34 in the league, all but two of which have been starts. He has scored five times from a variety of roles but more often than not from the left flank of Cardiff's attack.
The former Charlton and Huddersfield man checked into The Hawthorns as a £15million recruit on a six-year deal in 2020, with Albion a Premier League club. The fee was spread over the entirety of the six years and Grant still has two years left on his deal come the summer.
That is when the forward admits he will contemplate his next steps after a season with 11th-placed Cardiff, a conversation he will have with his agents and Corberan.
Asked on Thursday about a possible extension to his time in Cardiff, Grant smiled: "We'll have to see! I've obviously still got years on my contract at West Brom, it's a conversation for the clubs to have."I'll go back and speak to my representatives and see what the best option is for me."
"It's the first time for me, I've never done it before, I've still got a couple years at my contract at West Brom, so I will be going back there, we'll see how things pan out.
"I think it just depends on the situation, I probably have to have a conversion with the manager and my representatives to see what the best outcome is for me, it's about me and my career, I want to play games, that's the most important thing and I've been lucky to do that this year."
"I don't think it's fun for any player!" Grant added of spending time out of regular football. "I've enjoyed coming here and playing, that was the most important thing and the manager has shown me faith which I'm grateful for.
"I still speak to some players there, I made some good friends there, in regards to everyone else they are focused on their own goals, looking to fight for the play-offs, so I haven't heard much from them but I don't take it personally. I don't see that as a negative."
Albion spent last summer seeking to significantly reduce their wage bill and with Grant unfancied by boss Corberan, the club struck a deal that saw the Bluebirds, managed by Turk Erok Bulut, cover a large percentage of Grant's salary for 2023/24.
Grant, 18-goal top scorer in the club's first season back in the Championship in 2021/22, believes he has matured out on loan and, while having not found the net as much as he might have desired, he still feels he has been an asset.
"I've definitely matured as a player," he said. "I've always and still see myself as a goalscorer but probably haven't done that as much this year. I back myself in how I can be an asset to the team and have managed to do that here. Hopefully I can add more goals."
