Bilic raves about one ‘Top’ West Brom player after ‘Six-pointer’ v Sheff Utd
West Brom manager Slaven Bilic singled out goalkeeper Sam Johnstone for praise after the Baggies earned their first Premier League win of the season against Sheffield United.
A first-half Conor Gallagher goal was the difference between the two sides and the win moved West Brom out of the relegation zone and up to 17th in the table.
Both sides had the chances to score but Johnstone made a couple of decent saves to keep his side ahead, following on from his brilliant showing against Manchester United last weekend.
Speaking after the match Bilic was delighted with the win and singled out his goalkeeper for praise.
“It’s early in the season, but it feels like a six-pointer,” he told West Brom’s official website.
“I’m delighted for the boys. They showed quality. They showed character. They showed resilience. They showed everything. We could have scored a second goal and that would have made things a little easier for us.
“They also had a few chances but Sam was top again. As a team, we were very good and we’re all very happy with the three points. The performance wasn’t as important as the result tonight, but we got a good performance and a good result.”
Johnstone has made some mistakes this season, most notably against Tottenham Hotspur, but his shot-stopping has been excellent throughout.
At The Hawthorns on Saturday, he was regularly called into action but pulled off some excellent saves and was commanding in his area.
According to FBRef, he ranks as the best goalkeeper in the league in terms of post-shot expected goals, while he ranks fourth for save percentage, with the former United man stopping 74.1% of shots on goal.
The Blades managed 21 shots during the game (via WhoScored) and according to InfoGol, they generated Chris Wilder’s men generated 3.25 xG. At this point, the win is all that matters, but the Baggies need to improve defensively and stop relying on their goalkeeper.
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