Ex-West Bromwich Albion striker Kevin Phillips believes Callum Robinson's goalscoring form for the Republic of Ireland will be a 'massive boost' to the Baggies ahead of tonight's tie against Birmingham City, as he spoke to West Brom News.

The 26-year-old grabbed a brace in Ireland's World Cup qualifier against Azerbaijan last Saturday before following it up with a hat-trick in a 4-0 friendly hammering of Qatar earlier this week, putting him in a strong position to return and make a real impact against Lee Bowyer's men this evening.

After scoring three goals in his first three games of the 2021/22 Championship campaign, the goals have dried up since and he will be desperate to get back into form in the West Midlands side's quest to return to the Premier League at the first time of asking.

He has continued to make an impact even without these goals, coming on against Queens Park Rangers last month to provide two assists in their late 2-1 victory at The Hawthorns, but Valerien Ismael will be hoping to see the Irishman bag a goal or two tonight with the likes of Grady Diangana and Jordan Hugill failing to find the scoresheet so far this season.

This is a lack of potency that has proved to be detrimental at times throughout 2021/22 already, drawing three winnable games in a row after the previous international break and losing 1-0 against Stoke City in their previous match.

But Robinson could now be set to translate his international form to domestic football - and pundit Kevin Phillips believes his form for the Republic of Ireland will be a huge boost for his domestic side going into tonight's tie against a leaky Birmingham defence.

He said: "He started the season really well but then he got COVID and he’s had a bit of backlash for not getting the injection. And then he goes and shuts everyone up by smashing in those goals and getting himself a hat-trick at the Aviva Stadium.

"It’s brilliant for him and brilliant news for West Brom going into a crucial game against Birmingham.

"I watched them in their last game against Stoke and they were poor on the night so they need to bounce back against Birmingham.

"Having Robinson back in amongst the goals will be a massive boost for West Brom.

"I look forward to watching that game on Friday night."

The Verdict:

It will be interesting to see whether Callum Robinson starts tonight having played 77 minutes in midweek, also having to catch a flight over from Dublin to be ready for tonight's game.

Valerien Ismael will be keen not to risk an injury to the 26-year-old considering how important he is for the Baggies. He's not only important because of his attacking threat, but also the competition he provides in the front three, allowing Ismael to rotate his forwards and keep them on their toes throughout the season.

The Republic of Ireland international showed he could be one of his domestic side's leading scorers with his early-season form, but gaining consistency and a sufficient amount of game time will be key if he wants to get into double figures and beyond this term.

Whether he can translate his international form to West Brom remains to be seen, but he will certainly face a bigger test tonight against Birmingham City than he did against Qatar on Tuesday.

Raising his performance levels will be especially important in this West Midlands derby, because he's likely to be involved in some capacity this evening whether he starts or comes off the bench.