The Athletic journalist Dominic Fifield has recently issued his concerns over the challenge that Sam Allardyce faces at West Bromwich Albion.
Fifield recently appeared on the latest episode of the Totally Football Show podcast and the panel discussed multiple issues involving the Premier League. One topic of discussion was Allardyce and the challenge that he faces at West Brom. Fifield believes that Allardyce’s job at the Hawthorns is ‘far tougher’ than what he had to do at Crystal Palace or Everton.
The Baggies sacked Slaven Bilic after the club’s 1-1 draw in the Premier League against Manchester City. Allardyce was appointed later on and his first game in charge at his new club saw West Brom lose 3-0 to Aston Villa this past weekend.
Will West Brom be the toughest job of Allardyce's career?
Yes
No
Fifield made it clear that West Brom may not be able to spend as much as Crystal Palace did under Allardyce and this factor can make it tough for the manager.
He said: “People talk about the Sam Allardyce effect, but at his last relegation fight – not really counting what he did at Everton because there was a squad that was underperforming and should’ve been higher up the table – when he went into Palace, he had a poor start there, pretty much, and spent £40 million in January on four players to take them up the table. By the end of that season, they were winning at Liverpool, they were winning at Chelsea, they were beating Arsenal at home.
“He’s not going to get £40 million, £50 million to spend at West Bromwich Albion. So I think, it is a far, far tougher task.”
TIF Thoughts on Dominic Fifield’s comments regarding Sam Allardyce…
The Baggies spent £36.41 million in the summer transfer window. In the summer of 2019, they spent only £19.35 million during their time in the Championship. Meanwhile, in the summer of 2018, the club shelled out £13.67 million.
This clearly shows that the Baggies aren’t high spenders in the market and as a result, Allardyce might have to make do with a lesser budget and that might make his job tricky. Because of this factor, it is understandable why Fifield believes that his job at West Brom could prove to be tough.