West Brom produced a strong performance to pick up a comfortable 3-0 win against Bristol City at the Hawthorns to climb back into the top two of the Championship table.

Valerien Ismael’s side went into the game needing to show a clear response to their 2-1 defeat away against Swansea City in midweek. That was a match that saw them outplayed, especially during the second 45 minutes as they surrendered their 1-0 lead.

Matters were not helped for the Baggies heading into the contest with Jake Livermore suspended following him picking up his fifth booking of the campaign at Swansea.

While the Baggies also once again had to cope without the injured Alex Mowatt as well in the middle of the park.

Despite those issues though, Ismael’s side were far too good on the day for a Bristol City side that have actually been strong on their travels this term so far.

With all that in mind, we take a look at THREE things we clearly learnt about the Baggies following the win against Bristol City…

Robert Snodgrass the answer for West Brom’s midfield problems

It has been a very slow start to the season for Robert Snodgrass due to him experiencing some issues with his fitness.

However, against Bristol City, he got the chance to put down a marker of his quality to Ismael as he started the game in the middle of the park.

Snodgrass is more used playing as a winger or a number ten, but he delivered an excellent display in the midfield two alongside Jayson Molumby against Bristol City.

The 34-year-old’s quality in possession was vital to helping West Brom retain possession and build the play through the thirds a lot better and more often than we have seen in most of their matches so far this season.

In total, Snodgrass managed to make two key passes and also maintained a passing accuracy of 83% to help the Baggies push Bristol onto the back foot for most of the game.

It was a performance that showed that Snodgrass can do a real job in that midfield area for Ismael’s side this season. That could be vital considering they only have three specialist central midfielders in their squad at the moment.

 

 

Darnell Furlong back towards his best form

Soccer Football - Championship - West Bromwich Albion v Derby County - The Hawthorns, West Bromwich, Britain - September 14, 2021 West Bromwich Albion's Darnell Furlong in action with Derby County's Dylan Williams Action Images/Ed Sykes

So far this season, Darnell Furlong’s form has not reached the heights that he is capable of for the Baggies.

While he also not showed the form he showed often for them during their promotion from the Championship during the 2019/20 season.

However, against Bristol City, Furlong was an excellent performer for the Baggies and was a constant threat down the right-hand side of the field.

The defender managed to produce two vital moments of quality to assist Jordan Hugill’s opener and Karlan Grant’s effort to make it 3-0 just after the restart.

The 25-year-old was also able to do his defensive duties well, managing to win seven duels, make two tackles, one interception and one clearance for the Baggies.

That is the sort of performance that West Brom now need to see from Furlong on a more consistent basis throughout the rest of the campaign.

When he is at his best he can be one of the best right-side defenders in the league and that is what he showed against Bristol City.

Ismael shows he is capable of finding a plan B for West Brom

Soccer Football - Championship - Cardiff City v West Bromwich Albion - Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff, Wales, Britain - September 28, 2021 West Bromwich Albion coach Valerien Ismael celebrates after the match Action Images/John Sibley  EDITORIAL USE ONLY. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or "live" services. Online in-match use limited to 75 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club/league/player publications.  Please contact y

Despite West Brom making a strong start to the season in terms of their results under Ismael, there has been some concern from supporters over the style of play that he has been getting his side to produce during the opening 13 games.

Ismael’s Barnsley side enjoyed a lot of success playing very direct up to the final third and following that up with a really high press to pen in opponents.

He has clearly tried to replicate that at the Hawthorns and there have been games where that has really worked, with the 4-0 win over Sheffield United a case in point.

However, against Swansea, the Baggies were played off the park and did not retain possession anywhere as well as they needed to and were also left in big trouble once the Swans had broken their high press.

Against Bristol City, Ismael mixed things up slightly from a tactical perspective. It was clear that West Brom were attempting to have much more control of the ball and build the play at times rather than always looking for the early ball forwards.

Snodgrass and Molumby in the middle of the park really helped to make that approach work with their quality in possession and there was much more of a flow about their performance in general as a result.

These are the types of performances and results that will bring fans fully on board with Ismael and what he is trying to build at West Brom.

There is nothing wrong with going direct at times and having a high press, but the Baggies also need to retain the ball better now moving forwards in certain games as they did here.