View: West Brom 24y/o with just two starts since August is Bilic’s secret weapon
From the outside looking in, it would seem as though Filip Krovinovic has lost his way a bit at West Brom. After arriving on loan from Benfica in the summer, the Croatian playmaker started the first five matches of Albion’s season but since August has only been named in Slaven Bilic’s starting line-up on two occasions.
Krovinovic, 24, initially impressed the West Brom fanbase with his intricate passing and ability to link-up with fellow attackers. However as the midfielder continued to start for the Baggies, it became more and more obvious that his ability to keep possession was more detrimental to the way Albion attacked than anything else.
The Zagreb-born ace is extremely skilled at keeping the ball but that means that he does not play as many killer balls as many would hope for a central attacking midfielder who is playing behind a centre-forward. He also lacks the ability to drive forward on the ball and dribble past defenders, meaning that a lot of Albion’s attacks featuring the Croat would end up being slowed down, allowing defenders to get into position and easily force back those pressing forward in blue and white stripes.
Matheus Pereira has replaced Krovinovic in that No 10 role behind the striker and the Brazilian has shown a lot more of a cutting edge. Stats by WhoScored show that Pereira has averaged 2.2 key passes per league appearance this season compared to Krovinovic’s 0.9. Pereira has also averaged 1.1 dribbles per outing in the Championship while Krovinovic has averaged a very low 0.5.
Although Krovinovic is not starting for West Brom as often anymore, he is still one of the most important players in Bilic’s squad.
Bilic has impressed fans with his substitutions this season and one of the most relied-upon substitutes he has is the 24-year-old playmaker.
If Albion need to see out a game, Krovinovic is the man who can come off the bench, keep possession of the ball and tilt the game in the Baggies’ favour if they are beginning to look as though they are under the cosh.
Stats by WhoScored show that Krovinovic has had pass accuracy percentages of 85.7, 92.3, 94.3, 83.8 and 92 in his last five appearances off the bench.
In the wins against Stoke and Hull this week, Krovinovic’s impact off the bench has been a key factor in West Brom winning maximum points and keeping themselves top of the league.
It just goes to show that you do not have to be in the starting line-up to be one of the best weapons a manager has at his disposal.
In other West Brom news, Tottenham and Liverpool are eyeing up this Albion youngster.