Jamie O'Hara makes West Brom vs Wolves admission ahead of FA Cup tie at The Hawthorns

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Published on:

18 Jan 2024, 1:40 pm

Jamie O'Hara admits he "did not realise how big" the West Brom versus Wolves rivalry was until he played in the fixture.

The sides will face off at The Hawthorns in the first Black Country derby since 2020-21 on 28 January in the fourth round of the FA Cup.

O'Hara played in the fixture during his time at Wolves and says it compares with the biggest derbies in the country.

"I didn't realise how big a game that was," he said on talkSPORT [17 January, 11:09pm]. "It's a big derby, that.

"Everyone talks about North London, Tyne-Wear, Man United v Liverpool, whatever - this game is massive."

Excitement building

The fact that this game was picked for one of the prime television slots tells you all you need to know about how hotly anticipated it is.

It has been three seasons since the clubs last met, and close to 12 years since they last faced off in front of supporters owing to the Covid pandemic.

O'Hara learned first hand about the hatred this fixture brings, and that will be no different this time around with a place in round five on the line.

Carlos Corberan will rightly prioritise the league this season, with promotion the ultimate aim, but he will name his strongest XI for this match.

Beyond this contest, hopefully it will become a regular occurrence again. Should Corberan keep doing what he has been doing, there is no reason why that cannot be the case.

For now, let's just hope for a home victory later this month and a place in the next round.

In other West Brom news, Chris Lepkowski says he would be amazed if a certain takeover development happened at The Hawthorns.

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Jamie O'Hara

Wolves