West Brom must be wary v Southampton after Kyle Walker-Peters warning
Southampton star Kyle Walker-Peters has sent West Brom a message ahead of the two sides’ Championship play-off semi-final.
The Baggies secured a play-off spot by finishing fifth in the Championship thanks to their 3-0 victory over Preston North End at The Hawthorns on Saturday (4 May).
It sets up a two-legged tie with Southampton, who finished fourth in the division having been relegated from the Premier League last season.
The first leg takes place on Sunday 12 May as West Brom welcome the Saints to The Hawthorns before heading to St Mary’s Stadium for the second leg on Friday 17 May.
Russell Martin’s side did the double over the Baggies this season, something which Walker-Peters was keen to point out recently (via Southern Daily Echo, 6 May).
Walker-Peters said, “The playoffs are something that I’ve not been involved in before. We will definitely go into that game with a lot of confidence.
“I guess that they’ll also go into it really hungry to beat us and show that they are better than us.
“We are aware that we have beaten them twice and we know what we need to do to beat them.”
West Brom must ensure history doesn’t repeat itself against Southampton
West Brom fans wouldn’t have needed a reminder from Walker-Peters that the Saints got the better of them twice this season.
Southampton claimed a 2-0 victory on their most recent visit to The Hawthorns (16 February) having already won 2-1 at home earlier in the season (11 November 2023).
Carlos Corberan’s side will hope it is third time lucky for them on Sunday, and if they are to be victorious, keeping Walker-Peters quiet could prove important.
The right-back enjoyed a productive season under Martin, starting 43 of Southampton’s 46 Championship matches.
And he was one of the best-performing fullbacks of the season.
As per fbref, the 27-year-old was among the top one per cent of his positional peers in the Championship for the number of progressive carries (5.83 per 90), carries into the final third (2.96 per 90) and carries into the penalty area (1.68 per 90) he made.
In addition, he also ranked in the top two per cent for his number of progressive passes (7.12 per 90) and pass completion rate (89.7 per cent per 90).
He was a constant threat going forward, ranking in the top five per cent of Championship full-backs when it came to successful take-ons (1.94 per 90) and touches in the attacking penalty area (3.24 per 90).
While West Brom will already have a tough enough time as it is dealing with Walker-Peters’ offensive attributes, the ex-Tottenham Hotspur man is also no slouch defensively.
The Englishman ranked in the top eight per cent of Championship fullbacks across the 2023/24 campaign for the number of tackles he made in the attacking third (0.35 per 90).
If Walker-Peters is at his best during the playoffs, West Brom could have a very tough time down his side.
In other West Brom news, Corberan should consider dropping Brandon Thomas-Asante against the Saints after what he did recently.
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