‘Walking disaster’, ‘Get rid’ – These West Brom fans demand Bilic drops player v Man United
Plenty of West Brom fans have begun calling for Slaven Bilic to drop goalkeeper Sam Johnstone ahead of their next meeting with Manchester United.
The 27-year-old has come in for plenty of criticism already this season and made a particularly obvious error against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, costing his side a point.
With the ball floated into the penalty area, Johnstone failed to reach the cross before Harry Kane could head it into the unguarded net.
Bilic has stuck by his goalkeeper throughout his tenure, with the former United player reaching his 100th league appearance for the club earlier this season.
According to WhoScored ratings, Johnstone ranks as the 13th best goalkeeper in the Premier League this season, while his save percentage of 67.4% ranks him 12th overall (via FBRef).
Only Karl Darlow and Aaron Ramsdale have faced more shots on target than the former Manchester United man and he ranks third in terms of saves (via FBRef).
It is not Johnstone’s shot stopping that has been called into question though, but rather his decision making and ability to deal with crosses, and with pressure beginning to mount on Bilic he may be tempted to take action and bring in substitute stopper David Button.
Our view is that he deserves a little more time to prove his worth and work on his communication with an ever-changing backline ahead of him, but many fans are in disagreement.
One supporter described Johnstone as a walking disaster, while another said Bilic needed to show the conviction present in his decision to drop Romaine Sawyers and Grady Diangana, by removing Johnstone from the side.
Here are some of the best comments from social media.
In other West Brom news, View: Better without one player – Bilic may have found the answer to his defensive problems