West Bromwich Albion: Three hopes, one fear
By Sean Maslin
The Baggies are now Premier League regulars. Now, can they score enough to make an imprint in 2016-2017?
West Bromwich Albion coach Tony Pulis has a very simple system: defend at all costs and when you have a crack maaaaybe try and score. It is a system that frustrates opponents because it is like playing against a turtle or the Spartan formation of ancient Greece. It is also a system that is not exactly the most appealing to watch in the stands or on television.
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But it is incredibly effective. Despite being outmatched in every offensive category last season The Baggies pulled out enough results (thanks in part to their stout defense) to comfortably stay afloat in the Premier League (10-13-15, 43 points).
Now the question is for this side is if they just repeat last year’s performance or do they try and actually mount some attacking efforts. It really is a gamble. After seven years in the Premier League WBA have developed a system that much like Stoke City (which is interesting considering Pulis also coached The Potters) leads them to almost always finish right around the ten spot.
Playing outside of that system might give them a better chance to think beyond just survival, but it leaves them susceptible to dropping matches that they might have drawn in the past.
These are very interesting times at The Hawthorns so let’s not waste any more time and let’s get to the three hopes and one fear of West Bromwich Albion.