‘I just want to stay injury-free this season, take the opportunity, work hard and score goals,’ says West Brom hat-trick hero, Maja

Josh Maja says he wants to stay injury free this season after opening his account with a hat-trick in Sky Bet Championship side, West Brom’s 3-1 defeat of Queens Park Rangers away at the Loftus Road at the weekend.

Maja scored on 26 minutes to restore parity after Lucas Andersen gave the host a 16th minute lead. The Nigerian scored two more in the second half to give his club all three points as the race for a return to the Premier League officially kicked off in England.

The 25 year old has a torrid time with injury, especially since he joined the Baggies in August 2023. He suffered two major ankle injuries and scored just once last season in the 12 games he featured in out of a possible 46.

The Nigerian was naturally happy to start his season with a bang, admitting his opening hat-trick was ‘worth the wait.’

‘You can’t get better than that as a start to the season – to get the three goals and the three points for the team.

‘It made it worth the wait for everything that happened to me last season. The challenges I had to deal with were typical of the Championship.

‘But I just want to stay injury-free this season, take the opportunity, work hard and score goals.

“My faith has been my strength helping me through some difficult times. My Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ helped me through those tough times and come out stronger. Every goal I score will be dedicated to him.

‘It’s a blessing to make history [‘first Albion player to score an opening-day hat-trick in 101 years] but I want to stay humble and keep working hard,’ the Nigerian told xpressandstar.com