Miller ready to take mantle

Ishmael Miller has learned at the feet of three masters but now the Albion powerhouse knows the pressure is on to fill the boots of one of his mentors.

Miller, Roman Bednar and Luke Moore are the trio currently shouldering the burden of replacing Kevin Phillips, following the decision of last season’s leading scorer to leave for Birmingham.

Miller hopes a season of training with “SuperKev” might help him fill the void left behind by the former England man.

He said: “We have to try and rise to the challenge. Kev was a great player but he’s gone now so good luck to him. We hope he does well.

“We have to move on and make sure we do well as a team with the players we have now. We can’t think about what ifs.

“It was good to play with him. I’ve played with some top strikers, even at my age, and Kev is up there with the best of them.

“I’ve played with Nicolas Anelka, Robbie Fowler and Darius Vassell and he’s up there with them in terms of his finishing.

“You try to learn from other players and hope to do the good things which they do. You can always improve.”

For Miller, the season ahead represents the chance to rise above the ranks of players with raw potential and join the list of genuine top-flight forwards.

The former Manchester City man appreciates the importance of the year ahead.

He said: “It is a big season for me because I have played a handful of games in the Premier League already, had a few starts and thought I did well.

“But it was a hard situation at my old club and I wanted to come here to turn things around. So with that in mind this is a big season for me.”

With a potentially pivotal season ahead of him, Miller is targeting double figures on the goal chart during the upcoming campaign.

He said; “My aim is to get 10 Premier League goals. That would be a good start for me in my first full season playing up front.

“I would be happy with that return. But the main aim for this season is for us to stay up and get to 40 points as soon as we can, and for me to get as many goals as I can.

“We need to make sure we stay up – anything after that is a bonus.”