Almost three years after arriving at the Hawthorns, Abdoulaye Meite reckons Albion fans are finally seeing the real him.

Until three months ago, Meite’s Baggies career had been a personal nightmare.

But now, after the arrival of head coach Roy Hodgson brought an unexpected second chance, the 30-year-old hopes to rebuild the reputation that appeared forever tarnished by a miserable time in the West Midlands.

When Hodgson brought Meite back from the wilderness for the trip to Stoke at the end of February, Baggies supporters reacted with shock at the return of a player whose approval rating among the Hawthorns faithful was dismally low.

Yet Meite’s displays since the Britannia Stadium draw have brought him regular first-team football, a potential contract extension and the chance to show fans he is not the player they thought he was.

He said: “My reputation might not be what it should be. I know I have something to prove to the fans, to the club and to myself.

“When I first came here I did it to help the club stay in the Premier League and I didn’t do it because of injuries.

“Now I have returned to prove to everybody and to myself that I can do it. In football, you can be the hero one day and on the floor the next day. I was on the floor. Now I’m playing I am OK again.

“I know I didn’t play well before but this feels like a new life for me. I’m enjoying it.

“I was very frustrated before, but that’s football life. One day you playing, the next you’re not.

“But I maintained belief. I worked hard in training and then one day I was playing.”

Meite had fallen foul of a popular Albion manager before setting foot inside the Baggies training ground.

His well-publicised fallout with Gary Megson in the wake of a Bolton defeat to Manchester United had triggered his exit from the Reebok Stadium in a £1.5million move in the summer of 2008.

But, despite a handful of solid displays alongside Jonas Olsson, Meite’s fragile body frustrated the man who signed him for the Baggies, Tony Mowbray.

And, although he performed well before Christmas in last season’s Championship promotion campaign, the Ivory Coast international failed to fully convince Roberto Di Matteo, who sidelined him following the signing of Gabriel Tamas.

By the start of this season Meite was exiled from the first-team squad and, while he continued training with the senior players for most of his time, he found himself working with the reserve and youth players when his colleagues travelled to away matches.

But now Meite reckons he has found in Roy Hodgson a Baggies boss to get his career back on track in the nick of time.

The defender said: “I was having to work hard with the reserve team and train hard.

“I want to play football and, yes, it was difficult – one day you are playing, the next day you’re not, one day you’re up and the next day you’re down.

“It was very hard sometimes but I always had belief in myself and my football. It was the change of manager that changed things. He gave me a chance so now I am playing. He thinks I am good enough to play in his team so I am happy.

“He is an experienced manager, a strong character and he knows the league well. He knows what we need to do. Our shape is different. He talks with everyone in the squad and he’s there all day and all of the night for us.

“He’s good for us and good for the club. He did a good job at Fulham and I think he can do it here. I did think I might need to leave the club. But that is life, especially in football.

“It was hard for me but I still did my job. I’ve tried to be professional because I’m a footballer. This is life.

“I was at Bolton and had a problem with the manager, so I came here to restart my career. I knew I had a chance but I kept getting injured.

“The injuries are over now and I feel strong in my body and happy.”

By Steve Madeley