West Brom 2 Nottingham Forest 2 – Five talking points
Albion drew 2-2 with Nottingham Forest at The Hawthorns last night in controversial circumstances. Here are five talking points from that game.
1 HOME FORM IS CAUSE FOR CONCERN
Albion have won just one of their last seven home league games, drawing five, and losing the other.
The Baggies are currently much better away from home, where their 4-3-3 formation allows them to soak up pressure and hit teams on the break.
But when faced with resolute visitors at The Hawthorns, like Middlesbrough and Forest, they struggle to break the opposition down.
Perhaps it’s time to tweak the formation at home, and reinstate a No.10? The Baggies need to be a bit cuter on their own patch.
2 MAIN ISSUE IS GIVING AWAY GOALS
Despite their struggles in the past two home games in the league, Albion have still scored twice in each.
The main problem has been their willingness to give the upper hand to opponents with sloppy and unnecessary goals.
Playing out from the back is great when it works, because it opens up space in behind, but too many goals are being conceded by this method, particularly at home.
Sometimes, the defenders need to simply play the percentages and clip a ball into the channel. Decision-making must tighten up.
3 GARETH BARRY REMAINS KEY TO THE SYSTEM
Jake Livermore may be suited to a holding role when the team is on the back foot, but not in games like this, when Albion need to create.
Barry’s range of passing was sorely missed last night, and no wonder Darren Moore sent for him relatively early after an off-day for Livermore.
Sam Field impressed at the base of midfield in the FA Cup, and perhaps he should be Barry’s natural understudy in that role, particularly at home. But keeping the veteran midfielder fit for the run-in will be key.
4 REKEEM HARPER’S CONTRACT GROWS MORE SIGNIFICANT
The 18-year-old was one of the few players, alongside Stefan Johansen and Jay Rodriguez, who was trying to up the tempo in a flat first half, and then he cracked the bar with a stunning volley after half-time.
Harper has a habit of fading towards the end of games, but there’s no doubting his ability. Moore is confident he will sign a new contract, but the closer it gets to the end of the season the more worrying it gets for Albion.
The Baggies will get compensation even if he leaves for a free, but with so much potential, they will not want to lose him.
5 MATT PHILLIPS CAN’T RETURN QUICKLY ENOUGH
The winger has been out with a ‘bad’ ankle injury since the start of January, but he’s back in training now and it’s hoped he’ll return in February.
Albion will be counting down the days because nobody in the squad has Phillips’s ability to commit defenders on the counter-attack.
Jacob Murphy and Jefferson Montero may go some way to replace the missing pace, but neither are as strong as Phillips, and neither can play in the central midfield role he flourished in.
