Ahead of the Easter trip to the Hawthorns at the weekend, LFW caught up with regular West Brom contributor Dr Matt Graham for his assessment of life under Tony Pulis.
We tipped West Brom to finish in the bottom three this season. Apart from our predictions always being wrong, why haven’t you?
Dr Matt: The way that West Brom were heading under Alan Irvine, your prediction may well have come true. However, the board took a swift and ruthless decision by sacking him, and the upturn in results has been remarkable. Since January the club's form has been brilliant, and as our relegation rivals have failed to pick up points, the team has steadily clawed its way towards survival.
While I am cautiously optimistic of avoiding the bottom three, it is still far from guaranteed — the final run in is terrible, with fixtures against Liverpool, Chelsea, Manchester United and Arsenal to come. Realistically I cannot see the team getting many points from any of those games, which means our next three matches against bottom half sides, will be crucial to the final position.
Alan Irvine seems universally liked, but can’t seem to cut it as a manager — what went wrong for him at Albion? Was his sacking fair?
Dr Matt: When I wrote the previous preview for you, I was in a small minority willing to defend Irvine and give him the benefit of the doubt. At that time I couldn’t see the point of removing him, especially because there was no obvious replacement. However, the board’s decision to sack him has been totally vindicated given the upturn in form since the New Year, and shows that there is little room for sentimentality in football.
Our run of form from the start of November, until his sacking in late December, was abysmal winning only two games, which saw the team hurtling towards the bottom three. Throwing away a two goal lead against QPR was symptomatic of the malaise, and was in many ways the final straw for the club hierarchy and the supporters. Irvine was tactically inept, the team played negative football, there were some horrific performances, and his constant whining and excuses were beginning to wear thin. He simply looked out of his depth, and was unable to change things.
Furthermore, it appears that Irvine was simply too nice, and didn’t have the total respect of the squad because he was a bit of a pushover; several key players have since mentioned how hard the new training regime is under Tony Pulis, which is probably an indication that things were a bit easy before. I feel sorry for him, but the decision to sack him has proved justified.
Tony Pulis doesn’t seem a very Albion-type appointment, given the system you operate with the technical director and all. What did you make of his arrival first of all?
Dr Matt: I must admit I was very surprised that not only did West Brom appoint Tony Pulis, but that he accepted the position, and has been warmly embraced by the fans. We must remember that Pulis was regarded by many as the anti-Christ when he was in charge at Stoke, and the official club programme once published the memorable sentence: "Stoke train with cannons rescued from local medieval ruins. Footballs are loaded into them and fired into the distance… It's a game plan that squeezes the life out of what used to be known as football". Oh the bitter irony. How things change.
The football hasn’t been the prettiest, but it is the results that count, and I think many supporters are hopeful that if the club can retain its Premier League this season, then Pulis might add a bit of flair and creativity similar to that of Crystal Palace last season. Indeed his appointment doesn’t fit with the typical Albion mould, but it appears that the club was flexible, allowing Pulis to exact some compromises from chairman Jeremy Peace, with the structures being modified so that he had full control of transfers and first team decisions. It will be interesting to see how things develop in the future in regards to our continental model.
What has he changed and how has he done so far?
Dr Matt: Fundamentally, the team has been tightened up defensively. There is now an organisation, shape and structure to the whole team, and since Pulis was appointed we simply have not conceded many goals — 11 since January, of which eight came in three matches.
The team is also far more direct in the way it plays, with the ball being transitioned much faster to the forwards, whereas under Irvine the ball was passed sideways much of the time. In fact, our possession stats are extremely low, but there is a faith that the new found organisation of the team can repel possession based teams, while utilising the ball when we do have it.
Pulis has been fantastic for West Brom so far. The team are playing effective football, winning games, and it looks like we might well avoid relegation. It isn’t the greatest spectacle (although the FA Cup win against West Ham was a superb performance), but needs must. It’s all about winning in the end. I think most supporters are happy with the way things have turned out.
Who have been your stand out performers and weak links? Where is the team strong and where is it weak?
Dr Matt: Joleon Lescott has been fantastic this season, and has been the fulcrum of our much improved defence in recent months. Since January the defence has been extremely strong, which provides a platform for our counter-attacking game. Craig Gardner was a brilliant addition to the team and Saido Berahino’s goals are the reason why we are now moving up the league.
Since Pulis was appointed, Brown Ideye has suddenly found himself scoring goals, after he was nearly farcically sold on deadline day in favour of Carlton Cole. Darren Fletcher has been brilliant in the centre of midfield, bringing a calming influence to proceedings.
The club is chronically short of fullbacks, and all of our ‘specialist’ players in those positions (Sébastien Pocognoli, Christian Gamboa, Chris Baird, Jason Davidson, and Andre Wisdom) have all been overlooked by Pulis who clearly trusts none of them. In recent matches centre backs such as Craig Dawson and Lescott have been deployed there, as well as Chris Brunt. The lack of pace in this area is a concern.
The injury to Ben Foster is a shame, as he generally a superb goalkeeper, although Boaz Myhill is an able deputy. I’ve also been really disappointed by Youssouf Mulumbu who has been very poor this year, while Stephane Sessegnon is frustratingly inconsistent. The team also needs to collectively score more goals to take the burden off Berhaino, and this is where the midfield needs to step up.
How do you see next season going?
Dr Matt: The team will need a massive overhaul yet again, with several players out of contract, and many of the new recruits from last summer failing to have any sort of an impact. Pulis will clearly want to put his stamp on the team, and the board I am certain will back him in this regard. Hopefully, if survival is guaranteed, more flair / pace will be introduced into the team, to make the spectacle more exciting. I would predict that if we continue to be set up and play in the way we are at the moment, then West Brom could expect to be safely perched in mid-table next season.
Short, medium and long term aims for the club?
Dr Matt: For a club like West Brom, surviving in the Premier League is always the first and foremost priority, which is still not certain. If we can achieve that, then some long term stability would be nice. I talked about the club being in a state of crisis last time round, and I believe the club needs a sustained period where it isn’t chopping and changing things, while allowing Pulis the time to implement his own ideas fully. I was delighted that we took the FA Cup more seriously this season (although losing to Villa wasn’t ideal), and it would be great to see another cup run soon. There are also some promising youngsters at the club and it would be superb to see some of them integrated into the first team squad.
The Twitter @SAHistoryMatt, @loftforwords
Pictures — Action Images