West Brom v QPR | Match Thread

[Abseits]

Someone nicked for racially abusing one of our players yesterday.... can't say I noticed any kerfuffle or consternation at any point, maybe it was aimed at Saito following the red card?

West Brom fan arrested after racism allegations - https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/a...s/c3d8r3pjvdro

[Dedders]

Leeds will certainly be on the bounce on Saturday that’s for sure!

[daveshads]

As if to put things into perspective. Were any of us remotely surprised that Portsmouth beat Leeds?
An extraordinary league we are in!!!

[SheepRanger]

Vale is a 10. He has already said he's a 10 or someone that plays in the attacking third. Can't see him taking a deal where we said to him from now on you are playing left back. I know he did a job at Bristol Rovers but he said himself he's no 10 type player.
I think thr Brazilian lad is being lined up as our long term solution for our lb spot.

That's what I originally thought, but someone on here suggested he'd be a LB because of his loan. I hope you're right though, we need someone with ability in the final third and he seems to be highly thought of.

I played LB for many years because I wasn't good enough to play further upfield. It shouldnt be that difficult a position to fill and anyone with pace should make a decent fist of it.

[Dono77]

Vale is a 10. He has already said he's a 10 or someone that plays in the attacking third. Can't see him taking a deal where we said to him from now on you are playing left back. I know he did a job at Bristol Rovers but he said himself he's no 10 type player.
I think thr Brazilian lad is being lined up as our long term solution for our lb spot.

[SheepRanger]

Who plays instead of Paal? I agree he's crap buy yet again a failure to sign another left back has left us in this mess. Yet nourry thinks he is a smart #### and knows better. He doesn't.

We bought an injured replacement...Harvey Vale. I think I read he's back in some form of training. Perhaps he'll have a cameo appearance before the end of the season. But right now... its a head scratcher. I think Colback has played there in the past.

[Dono77]

Who plays instead of Paal? I agree he's crap buy yet again a failure to sign another left back has left us in this mess. Yet nourry thinks he is a smart #### and knows better. He doesn't.

[daveshads]

As Abseits said, WBA winger "skinned" Paal in lead up to penalty. Paal should have taken the yellow card as the impending danger wasn't difficult to see.
I was once of the opinion that Marti should go, but then had to eat much humble pie after that great run.
But always always he starts with Paal. He almost never stops a cross coming over and I would never ever play him. For me, an absolute blind spot for Marti.

[72bus]

I'm just back home .
We were pish poor .
Alfie Lloyd couldn't trap a bag of cement last time I saw a CF play so bad for us he was called Leon Clarke.
Why play Yang and saito on the wing who's going to get on the crosses.
Yang won't take defenders on .
Chair holds on to it far to long .
We are so slow at the back , I thought at least Colback tried to move it forward .
Sat nav took me round the houses took me through Smethwick made the white city estate look like Mayfair.....

[Abseits]

[QUOTE=SheepRanger;n2611862]

The BBC line up suggests Smyth played CF....? Too be honest I didn't take too much notice.

Looked like Smyth and Chair sort of alternated in the central role for first 25 mins. But frankly it ended up more like that "false number 9" nonsense thereafter. When Lloyd came on we were basically left with nobody up front - I'm afraid Alfie is nowhere near Championship standard. Given he's virtually 22 years old I do wonder if he'll ever make I at this level?

[Abseits]

That was really poor. We are looking like naive little boys against men in too many fixtures lately. Yeah, we are short on strikers but where were the missed chances today that a Clive Allen or Charlie Austin would've converted? Our approach play into final third is chronically slow, predictable, one-dimensional and pisseasy to defend against. It's our build up play and inability to create genuine threats on opposition's goal that's the issue, not absence of Frey/Kolli/Celar.

WBA won their pen by dint of a genuinely fast winger skinning Paal and firing a ball into our box and having at least 4 players bursting onto us at speed. The pure pace of the move had us all at sea. By comparison, we spent all game inching the ball down the flank before wafting the ball into the box for one of their 5 defenders to clear.

Only positive I took today is Morrison looks a composed and tidy CB - I just hope his injury record is just bad luck and he's not made of glass.

Right now I'd seriously worry about how we'll fare next season. Yep, half this squad will be gone but I dunno if that is a good or bad thing? I suppose it's all down to what players we get in over the summer.

[SheepRanger]

Is tells us a lot that we chose to leave our only fit centre forward on the bench and start with a kid who doesn't speak the language and has never played upfront on his own. Lloyd should be playing at league 2 level maybe league 1. Hes another Armstrong. Lots of pace but no brain and not a striker.

Wish we would just sign a proper target man.

The BBC line up suggests Smyth played CF....? Too be honest I didn't take too much notice.

[Stanfan]

Alfie on bench because he was carrying an injury and not up to 90 mins. I just find colback annoying as he seems to do stupid stuff a lot when he’s fit enough to actually play. Chair not playing a true 10 as only seems to play on left. We’re predictable unless we can switch play but right side thin on the ground when attacking. Ref very soft on time wasting but probably because he’d have booked the whole wba team and sent off goalie and right side defender. The lost stud by the goalie was a pathetic example of ref losing the plot. Nows the time to me to be preferring players here next year

[Dedders]

I just hope Noury tweaks his algorithms before the summer transfer window - those overseas signings seem a bit iffy right now and with the amount leaving on a free in the summer he needs to get it right. All in the hands of a 26 year old……

[SheepRanger]

Do you think we watched him play before deciding to sign him ?

Doubt it.....as his data was good for 23/24 with 14 goals from 35 games as an attacking midfielder. He's young too.

What he data doesn't show is that the Belgium Super league is rubbish. For Westerloo he played in front of average home attendances of 5,700