‘We have to be better’ – Bilic highlights one key area West Brom must improve on v Sheff Utd
West Brom manager Slaven Bilic has insisted that his side must improve in the final third ahead of their crucial meeting with Sheffield United.
The Baggies and the Blades sit 19th and 20th in the Premier League respectively and are winless, with both sides struggling to score goals so far this season.
Speaking ahead of the match, Bilic explained that his team need to be more clinical in front of goal if they are to earn their first win of the season.
“Our performances since Fulham have been really good, but we have to produce results now,” he told the club’s official website.
“Since the Fulham game we have been great in terms of the reaction, the work on the training ground, the atmosphere in the group and the patterns we are working on. We have to be better in the final third. We need a little bit more quality, determination and luck.
“The stats are there. We have enough entries into the final third to score goals and we have to turn those positions and moves into goals. That’s what we have to do as a team. That responsibility falls to the whole team. We can’t approach Sheffield United in a different way to Spurs and Manchester United.”
Despite possessing a number of exciting attacking players, the Baggies have struggled to create so far this season.
According to FBRef, no side has generated fewer expected goals than West Brom so far this season, while they have scored just six goals in their opening nine matches, failing to score on six occasions.
Against Manchester United, they did create some good opportunities through Conor Townsend and Callum Robinson, while they should have had a penalty barring a bizarre VAR decision.
However, as Bilic said, they need to turn these dangerous situations into clear cut chances and goals if they are to pull themselves out of the relegation fight. Against United, they generated just 0.6 xG and only managed seven shots, two of which were on target (via FBRef).
Now the Blades do not possess the same talent as United, but the Baggies have not generated more xG than an opponent all season (via FBRef). This must change on Saturday.
In other West Brom news, how Bilic can accommodate Gallagher and Pereira