Steve Bruce must stick to attacking approach at West Brom despite poor results
West Brom came into the season hoping to improve what they did in the previous campaign where they finished on the 10th position in the league table.
However, after 10 matchdays, it is already looking like an uphill task to improve that as the Baggies are placed in the 21st position with just 10 points.
In their most recent fixture, West Brom held for a 1-1 draw against Norwich on Saturday at the Carrow Road Stadium.
Don’t change
Bruce arrived at The Hawthorns with a damaged reputation after he was sacked following the takeover at Newcastle United.
During his days at St. James’ Park, he was often accused of playing too defensive football by the Magpies faithful.
In the early phase of his management with the Baggies, there was a similar pattern with the team more focused on defensive attributes which ended up costing the side as they finished with the lowest goals tally amongst the top 12 teams in the previous campaign [Transfermarkt].
This season started with a breath of fresh air where West Brom was on the front foot pretty much in every match they played despite not getting the result they would’ve been hoping for.
On Saturday, however, it seemed like Bruce urged his players to stick to his tried and tested method of becoming strong defensively which is probably why they ended up making 242 short passes compared to 514 from the home side and provided just 14 crosses in the box.
Those numbers were extremely contrasting to what the side did earlier in the campaign where they were averaging 443 short passes and 29 crosses every game.
It is true that the results have not gone West Brom’s way that has put Bruce’s future at risk but the only thing good about the team this season has been that they are extremely fun to watch which might be one of the reasons why the fans have not already turned completely against the 61-year-old.
Therefore, Bruce must stick to the plans he had earlier in the season and keep hoping that things will turn around, sooner rather than later.
In other West Brom news, there is another free agent on Bruce’s radar and this one has 20 England caps to his name.