Gareth McAuley raves about ‘outstanding’ West Brom player
If Chris Brunt didn’t delete his Twitter account a few years back then the West Brom veteran would have seen himself trending on the social media network this week.
Brunt, 35, surprised a lot of football fans when he was ranked 10th for the number of assists supplied in the Premier League over the course of the 2010s.
However if you’re an Albion fan who watched Brunt in that time, then that would be no surprise to you.
It is no shock to former West Brom defender Gareth McAuley too, who scored 17 goals in his time at The Hawthorns with a good majority of them supplied by Brunt.
McAuley also played alongside Brunt for the Northern Ireland international team and the former Baggies centre-back has been speaking about how unsurprised he is that the winger managed so many assists in the 2010s.
“I, alongside the likes of Craig Dawson, were fortunate to attack a number of Brunty’s crosses – scoring vital goals for West Brom,” McAuley said on the Belfast Telegraph website.
“But Brunty was much more than a player who crossed quality balls in with his left foot.
“Brunty had scouted the opposition and told us exactly where he would be crossing the ball to and why. He planned our runs and technically he was very good. Nine times out of 10 when we met a Brunty cross, we scored. That’s how important he was to our attacking play.
“I always felt confident with the ball at Brunty’s feet.
“His range of passing was outstanding, he could ping the ball to a team-mate’s feet and he really had a natural ability.”
Brunt is likely approaching the end of his career as a West Brom player.
He joined the Baggies from Sheffield Wednesday in 2007 and has since made 416 appearances across all competitions, scored 49 goals and supplied 89 assists.
The 35-year-old’s contract at The Hawthorns expires at the end of the season and once that happens, it will no doubt feel like the end of an area for many West Brom fans.
Brunt has previously spoken of his desire to enter the world of coaching once he hangs up his boots and based on what McAuley said about the tactical nous of the Northern Irishman, it seems as though it will be something he could be quite good at.
In other West Brom news, there’s been an update on the likelihood of Albion re-signing Dwight Gayle this month.