Shrewsbury 1 West Brom 2 - analysis and pictures

A slick first-half followed by a less fluid second. What matters to West Brom right now is not so much events on the pitch but what's happening off it.

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Head coach Alan Irvine was satisfied enough with his squad's first public workout which went ahead without a cluster of key figures including Gareth McAuley and Joleon Lescott.

The two central defenders are being protected to prevent calf muscle strains becoming anything more serious.

But it's the yawning gap in Albion's attacking make-up which remains the principle focus of the club's recruitment concerns.

In an ideal world, and with a long trip to California beckoning tomorrow, Irvine would not have wanted to play Stephane Sessegnon, Victor Anichebe and Saido Berahino for 78 minutes.

But his options are such at the moment that he doesn't really have much choice.

Having cleaned out their front line at the end of last season, the Baggies have still got major work to do to find the offensive players out wide and down the centre that can turn a strained squad into a strong one.

As an introductory offer from the 'two-for-the-price-of-one' players Albion have recruited so far, this was satisfactory enough.

Multi-position pair Craig Gardner and Chris Baird were utilised for the second half, Gardner making several incursions down his favoured right side which should have brought further goals.

But he is a familiar figure. There was keener interest in Sebastien Pocognoli, the Belgium international given his first 45 minutes in an Albion shirt on only his second day at the club.

The 26-year-old international looks both an unfussy left-back and an effective one with a couple of quality crosses adding to a clear relish for a robust challenge.

Albion fans are now quite used to the realities of their budget and where that places the club in the Premier League food chain, but equally there will be a determination to avoid last season's last-ditch supermarket sweep.

Mind you, if the Baggies are scoring the type of goals they produced last night there will be few complaints.

They were taken by Anichebe after 13 minutes and then Youssouf Mulumbu – benefiting from a sumptuous touch by Sessegnon – half an hour later.

But both goals were constructed by the kind of first-touch passing of which this team is so capable but which went strangely absent at times last season.

In between, Shrewsbury broke away to equalise on 30 minutes through Scott Vernon, but the newly-constructed League Two outfit had to work hard in the opening 45 minutes to restrict Albion to just two.

It all got a little fractured after that, although there was an uncomplaining second half from George Thorne, who remains the subject of Derby County's affections. It's all a bit of a 'phoney war' at the moment, however.

Irvine's task is difficult enough without so many question marks still lingering about the make-up of his squad.

By Martin Swain