Sky Sports pundit Danny Higginbotham has been drooling over the talent that West Brom have in their squad but highlighted an issue that James Shan has failed to fix after taking over from Darren Moore.
The Baggies saw their caretaker manager handed the reins in the dugout until the end of the season, having been in place for the last six matches since Moore’s exit earlier in the campaign.
Insisting that the squad are good enough to battle anyone on their day, Higginbotham singled out their struggles in possession, losing the games where they have seen more of the ball, as an issue which did not leave alongside Moore.
He told Sky Sports‘ Match Centre (18/04, 11:54): “The one thing I will say which was a problem under Darren Moore at times is that they can suffer when they have more possession, they can be too open at times.
“If you look at three of their four wins under (James) Shan, three of the games have been with less possession, both games they lost have been with more possession. That then at times can be a problem.
“They’re into the play offs, no doubt about that in my mind. What they have got is an abundance of goals in that team, whether it be Gayle, Rodriguez and they’ve got a team that on their day can beat and match anybody in that league.”
Opinion
Possession used to be everything in football but now it is simply one way to approach a game – and it seems that such a method does not suit the West Brom players. Higginbotham is right to drool over the quality they have at the Hawthorns, with the likes of Dwight Gayle and Tyrone Mings arguably Premier League players fighting it out in the second tier. However, it seems the club’s tactics have let them down, which was surely one of the reasons Moore was sacked in the first place. Shan has not fixed that issue yet and it remains to be seen whether he will try to before the season is out. West Brom cannot be a one dimensional side if they want to seal success in the play offs, for all the opposition has to do is negate them for 180 minutes and stroll to the final for a shot at promotion. If West Brom want to play counter attacking football, then set them up that way and do not let the players waver from Shan’s instructions.