Albion boss Roberto Di Matteo has hailed goalscoring star Roman Bednar as “like a new signing” and credits fitness coach Ade Mafe for getting the striker back in shape.

The Baggies head coach watched Bednar grab two goals in his first League appearance since his three-month drugs ban in a 2-2 draw at Sheffield United on Saturday.

Di Matteo admitted he was surprised to see the former Hearts man last 90 minutes in his second appearance of the week, as Bednar has only been back in full training for a fortnight.

The Italian said: “It’s great for him that he’s back in the team and scoring. But also, not just him, the whole team did well.

“It’s like a new signing for us. He’s worked really hard to get back. It’s surprising he’s scored straight away, because you expect him to be a bit rusty because of the long time he’s been out.

“But it’s fantastic. That’s why we employ a fitness coach. Ade Mafe has done his job.”

Di Matteo refused to comment on the controversial late penalty that denied his side all three points but he praised the performance of the Baggies, as they extended their unbeaten start to the season.

The Baggies boss said: “I don’t want to get banned, so I’m not going to comment too much on the penalty.

“It was a 50/50 and sometimes the referee gives a penalty like that for the home team. It was a bit soft but there is nothing we can do now. It was a very good performance. This is a tough place to come and play against Sheffield United.

“They put you under pressure. I thought we showed resilience against them and scored two goals. It’s disappointing that you score two goals away from home and don’t win. But at the end of the day you have to give credit to Sheffield United.

“It’s disappointing but you can’t be too disappointed with ourselves when we are top of the table after five games – until Monday night at least.

“We’ll try to keep our unbeaten run going for as long as possible. It feels very good to be top of the league.”