Valerien Ismael 'more than proud' of West Brom after Reading win
Valerien Ismael said he was immensely proud of his players after Albion beat Reading 1-0 despite suffering a coronavirus outbreak.
It was confirmed before the game that defenders Cedric Kipre, Matt Clarke, Semi Ajayi and Conor Townsend were all self-isolating after contracting Covid-19.
With other Albion players ill or injured it meant Ismael had just 10 fit senior pros at his disposal - with his bench consisting of six academy youngsters and back-up goalkeeper David Button.
The Frenchman revealed post-match the Baggies asked the EFL to postpone the game - only to be refused.
Nevertheless, Ismael's side put in an outstanding display - with the Baggies dominating from the first whistle to the last.
And they got the win they deserved thanks to Callum Robinson's first goal since August.
“I’m more than proud and I must congratulate the guys," Ismael said when asked about his team's display.
"You can imagine it has been a very difficult week.
"Every day a player came in with symptoms and tested negative then they would test positive.
"There were staff members as well and other people who work at the club.
“It was a very, very, difficult week to manage.
"After the press conference on Friday, we trained in the afternoon and had another two positive cases.
“We tried to postpone the game but the EFL forced us to play.
"After that, it was all about -'okay we have to do the job.'
"We said to the guys, to overcome the situation. It was a chance to show togetherness, team spirit and desire.
"I think from the first minute to the last minute we controlled the game.
"We created so many chances. We should have scored more goals. But one was enough to win.
"It was a great win for us and it's more than three points.
"For the players to create that atmosphere, that mentality after a difficult week - it could be massive for us."
Ismael admitted he was surprised the EFL didn't accept Albion's request to postpone the game - with the Baggies having four positive cases and other players who are showing symptoms.
“It wasn’t only positive cases – we some had players with symptoms as well," the boss continued.
"Now we will see tomorrow how this moves forward.
“We explained to the EFL and the doctor from the EFL said it was an outbreak but they forced us to play.
"We needed to accept that.
“Normally you think ‘safety first' and you have the responsibility for the opponent as well. But we had to accept it.
“We didn’t want to complain or look for excuses. We accepted the challenge and I think that is why we were able to perform like we did.
"We accepted the challenge and got our rewards."
