Ben Foster hopes this season will attract players to West Brom

Tony Pulis tried to sign Morgan Schneiderlin in January but the former Manchester United midfielder picked Everton instead, and on Saturday that came back to haunt the Baggies.

The 27-year-old scored an inventive goal on the stroke of half-time that Pulis said 'killed the game' as it doubled the host's lead just before the break.

Foster says this Albion team is the best he's played in since he first moved to The Hawthorns six years ago and he has been impressed with the 'gems' - like Allan Nyom and Matt Phillips - that the Baggies have found this season. But he admitted they were still some way behind the top seven.

"Look at some of the players Everton have like (Romelu) Lukaku and Ross Barkley," said Foster. "They're world class.

"It's so hard for any team below that top seven to attract those sort of players. So I don't know (how to make that step up). If I did know I'd be a chairman of a team or a successful manager. They're paying players £100,000 a week, that's the step up.

"Players like Morgan Schneiderlin want to be playing in Europe, they want to know that every game they plays they're going to be on the team that wins. And they deserve to be, because they're the proper players.

"We just have to get the ones are up-and-coming or the gems. To be fair we've been pretty good at finding a few gems in the past. But it's hard, everyone's trying to do it."

Everton are just one place above the Baggies in seventh, but they outclassed Albion at Goodison Park on Saturday and stretched their lead over the visitors to seven points.

Foster reckons the top seven are so financially strong that it will be difficult for anyone to break into that group in the future, but when he was asked if being 'best of the rest' this season will help lure players to The Hawthorns, he said: "Without doubt.

"Even some of the football we've played at times has been really decent, it's probably been the best since I've been here."

Albion were stung by two goals in six minutes just before half-time on Saturday, and never really recovered from that, eventually losing 3-0.

"I thought first half we actually did alright," said Foster. "We were maybe a little bit unlucky to be two goals down. Both goals were a little bit fortuitous with the way they developed, a few little ricochets and things like that falling to people.

"That's the Premier League for you, you give chances like that to teams, they're going to take them. It's always tough getting back in it, especially away to Everton. It was a tough game but I don't think we did too bad actually."

Ronald Koeman's team controlled the second half as the Baggies struggled to create any gilt-edged opportunities, and then Lukaku wrapped the game up eight minutes from time with a header. Foster revealed what Pulis said to his team at half-time.

"Just keep cool really, keep calm, don't try chucking the kitchen sink at it too early. If we get the next goal, that would be the important one, which would bring it to 2-1 and then anything can happen in the last few minutes.

"We tried to do that with getting a few balls into the box but it just wasn't meant to be. The third goal they scored, they've got some really good individual players that can just tear you apart when they want to."