View: 27y/o deserves West Brom start more than former international
The battle for the West Brom left-back shirt has been competitive over the last 18 months, with Slaven Bilic not fully convinced of his best option.
Last season, Kieran Gibbs, Nathan Ferguson and Conor Townsend all made more than 10 league starts in the role, with the Croatian shuffling his pack on a regular basis.
Going into the Premier League and following Ferguson’s departure, Gibbs was given the shirt for the first two games of the season, but since the former England man was sent off against Everton, Townsend has been preferred.
Speaking last month, Bilic told the media that Gibbs needed to improve his attitude if he wanted to earn his spot back (via Birmingham Mail).
“With Kieran, of course he is a quality player and I expect him to prove in training like every other guy in the squad and only the performance in training will get players closer to the starting XI or the bench,” he said.
This is not promising reading for the former Arsenal man and based on the performances of Townsend in recent weeks, he needs to do a lot more to earn his place back. Since coming into the team for the third league game of the season against Chelsea, the 27-year-old has grown into the role slowly and is now becoming a key creative weapon for the Baggies.
Currently, Townsend ranks third and fifth respectively in the squad in terms of final third entry passes and passes into the penalty per 90, while he averages the most progressive passes per 90 in the side (via FBRef). Of the regular starters, only Filip Krovinovic has completed more passes per game on average than Townsend and only Furlong has completed more passes while being pressured by an opponent (via FBRef).
The Englishman, who joined the club from Scunthorpe United in 2018, has also been strong defensively, making 1.67 tackles and 2.17 clearances per game. By comparison, Gibbs had a limited impact during his two starts, failing to make a key pass or a pass into the penalty area, and is yet to have a shot creating action (via FBRef).
Bilic admitted recently that Townsend is not the “perfect player” and it is probably fair to say that he is not yet on the same level as Darnell Furlong on the opposite flank. However, the Croatian values his effort immensely and that is such a valuable commodity in a relegation battle.
Asked about Townsend earlier month, Bilic told The Athletic: “Is he the complete, perfect player? No. There is a lot of room to improve but at the moment he is playing well, he gives his best, he’s a great worker and a great professional.”
The difference in sentiment is clear when compared to how he views Gibbs, and given their respective performances so far this season there is little reason to argue that the former England man will be taking that shirt back any time soon.
In other West Brom news, View: This is the reason West Brom lost at the death v Spurs