Ryan Mason explains Kyle Bartley issue amid ongoing West Brom absence
Albion are in a process of building up defender Kyle Bartley's fitness after he missed the latest friendly on Saturday.
Bartley, 34, is Albion's longest-serving player and vice-captain but his future at the club is up in the air after the Baggies added two new centre-backs to their options this summer.
Boss Ryan Mason, whose side were dealt a 2-1 friendly defeat at League One Blackpool on Saturday, said that a player's advancing years can make it 'more difficult to get going again'.
Bartley, who last week marked seven years at the club, was hampered by some injury issues last season, including minor keyhole surgery on a long-standing knee issue. That problem has left the defender unsuitable to feature regularly in congested runs of fixtures.
"It's just respecting his body and understanding that the older you get it can take more time to get going again," Mason said when asked about Bartley's absence at Blackpool.
