West Brom boss Tony Mowbray's assessment of play-off race after three defeats

The Baggies have lost significant ground in the top-six race after three defeats on the trot against Norwich, Sunderland and Bristol City since the return from the international break.

Prior to those, head coach Mowbray felt his side needed five wins from eight games left to guarantee a play-off place - with just five games now left of the Championship campaign.

It remains to be seen what is required to grab a fifth or sixth-placed finish, but the Baggies have managed just 13 victories in 41 games all season. Mowbray's troops welcome Watford, who are just two places and a single point behind in 10th, on Saturday.

"We have to take it on the chin and keep going. We have to try to win on Saturday," Mowbray said.

"Everybody's got difficult games. There are no easy games. Our last three games are Derby, Cardiff and Luton, all in the bottom four, and yet they're probably going to be tougher than this game tonight because they're fighting and scrapping for every point.

"Let's just play the games and see how it goes. I live in the north east and a month ago people were talking about Michael Carrick's position (at Middlesbrough), then you win games and they're back in it."

Millwall in ninth are now level on points with Albion with Watford trailing by just a point.

Plymouth are three points adrift at the bottom of the Championship but, as things stand, the Baggies' final three games are home clashes against Derby and Luton with a trip to Cardiff in between. Two points separate the three with Derby currently clear of the drop on goal difference.

Mowbray made the point that sneaking into the top six from below at the end of the campaign could work in Albion favour, as opposed to dropping out of automatic reckoning at the late stage, or Sunderland in fourth for much of the campaign.

"If we win a couple of games we'll be right in it," Mowbray said. "Let's see if we can take it right to the death. It's sometimes nice to sneak into the play-offs and end up winning them, as opposed to being a Burnley, Sunderland, Leeds and Sheffield United, who have to win the play-offs and the hurt is something that might linger with them.

"We will keep that energy, desire, togetherness as a group and be fine I'm sure. We need things to change in front of goal very quickly."