‘Nowhere to be seen’ – Goldberg criticises West Brom issue that Allardyce can’t solve
The West Brom defence was exposed again in their FA Cup exit to Blackpool and Sam Allardyce is failing to have the expected effect, according to Adrian Goldberg.
After losing to Blackpool on penalties in the third-round the pressure continues to mount on Allardyce and his charges with the new manager still winless as Baggies boss.
The defeat once again showed their defensive deficiencies as they shipped two goals to a side that are the joint second-lowest scorers in League One, and host of the West Brom podcast ‘The Liquidator’ Goldberg expressed his Allardyce concern.
Speaking on a video posted to his YouTube channel (09/01/21), former Birmingham Mail journalist Goldberg criticised the porous Baggies, saying “The defensive organisation I and many of us hoped for when Sam Allardyce arrived was nowhere to be seen.”
He added: “The worst thing about this defeat is that I don’t think anybody at West Bromwich Albion, the owners, the manager, the players, will be hurting anything like we fans are tonight.
“It’s not good enough.”
No defence for Allardyce
The penalty shoot-out defeat to League One Blackpool will be of grave concern to Allardyce as he tries to mount an unlikely Premier League survival bid.
While progress to the latter stages of the competition will not have been a priority for the Baggies this season, and their FA Cup exit ultimately reduces a potential fixture pile-up, the poor performance against a lower-league side is an ominous sign and shows the lack of cohesion in the team.
Allardyce named a mixture of first-team regulars and fringe players but no one particularly staked a claim for a place as they laboured to a defeat.
The two goals conceded to Blackpool now makes it 15 goals conceded in five games, a worrying average of three per game.
If that continues the Baggies stand no chance of securing their Premier League status, particularly given their failings going forwards as well with just 11 goals in 17 league games.
They were not able to open up Blackpool with much regularity, but it is the defensive issues that many Baggies fans thought Allardyce would be able to solve upon his appointment.
But like Goldberg, they have been left thoroughly unimpressed by the start he has made to his tenure at the club.
In other West Brom news, defender picks up knock to pile more injury misery on Baggies.
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