The Baggies sit third in the Championship table and are unbeaten in seven but 31 goals conceded means Darren Moore has work to do at the back.
We’re now 23 games into the Championship season, the exact halfway point of the 46-game marathon, a neat split just in time for Christmas.
Tomorrow the second half of the campaign kicks off but it’s worth looking over how West Bromwich Albion have done so far and whether they’ve met fan expectations from the start of the campaign.
The Baggies endured a difficult season last time out as they dropped out of the Premier League, although under the management of club legend Darren Moore in the latter stages, at least they didn’t go down without a fight.
Although a number of big players did leave the Hawthorns – the likes of Jonny Evans, James McClean, Ben Foster, Nacer Chadli and Salomon Rondon to name a few – some others, like Jay Rodriguez, stayed put (Transfermarkt).
In the Guardian’s fan-led 2018-19 Championship pre-season preview, Albion were expected to have a solid season, but promotion was seen as out of reach due to the risk of other teams spending more and becoming stronger, although a sixth-placed finish was not deemed out of reach.
However, the Baggies are enjoying a great campaign so far, sitting third in the table on 42 points and boasting a seven-game unbeaten record which includes five wins, of which the last one was a 4-0 hammering of Rotherham.
West Brom did experience a blip in late October and early November, losing three – including a 4-1 home thrashing by Derby – and drawing one of their four games during that period, but Moore’s subsequent switch to a 4-3-3 formation has worked wonders.
What’s more, Albion’s last game yielded only their second league clean sheet of the season, a positive statistic which will nonetheless need more work in the second half of the season.
That said, some West Brom fans were ecstatic to see their team’s shutout – and almost a bit surprised, perhaps – and took to Twitter to express their feelings:
Going back to the Guardian’s pre-season prediction, it looks as though expectations are being exceeded, with a playoff tilt definitely on and even the outside chance of automatic promotion still alive – not to mention the goal threat brought by Rodriguez, Dwight Gayle and Harvey Barnes.
That said, the festive games will give more of an insight into whether Moore can work more magic on the defence, with the January transfer window potentially seeing the arrival of back line reinforcements, but so far so good for the Albion.
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