West Brom 1 Derby 2 - Five things we learned from FA Cup defeat
On Saturday, Albion were knocked out of a Cup competition by lower-league opposition for the third time in a row.
After taking the lead at The Hawthorns, the Baggies were stunned by two Derby County goals in three second-half minutes. Here are five talking points to come out of the game:
1. Unnecessary gamble proved costly:
If you say you're going to take the cups seriously, then treat the matches like a league game. Obviously it's important to keep your squad happy, but if Tony Pulis really wanted to go deep in the competition, he'd pick his number one keeper.
Bringing Boaz Myhill in was the only change he didn't need to make, and yet it proved to be the one that decided the tie. His mistake for Tom Ince's goal is therefore, in turn, Pulis's mistake. Myhill was brilliant when Foster was injured, but he looked rusty on Saturday, and Pulis shouldn't have gambled.
2. The end is nearing for Jonas:
He's been a fantastic servant for the club, and continues to be a great ambassador, but Albion should say a big thank-you at the end of this season and let Jonas Olsson go.
He may fight like a lion, but his distribution is far too poor for this side, and on Saturday, his team-mates looked like they were trying to avoid giving him the ball.
Albion need to move on, and desperately need to buy at least one centre-back in the summer so Olsson can be released. His time at Albion would be tarnished by another season and he deserves to be remembered fondly.
3. Galloway needs to call Koeman:
Brendan Galloway's season-long loan started promisingly but then he lost his place after a couple of positional errors. The young Everton defender has bundles of talent, and plenty of potential, but he loves to bomb forward and leaves himself far too open at the back.
Pulis prefers more experienced players, and Galloway didn't do enough on Saturday to shunt him up the pecking order.
He's still third-choice left-back behind Allan Nyom and Chris Brunt, and it may be in his best interests to ask Ronald Koeman to recall him.
4. Hammond and Pulis should be looking for strikers:
The noises coming out of the club suggest Albion are looking at defensive midfielders, wingers, and defenders in this window, but on Saturday it was painfully obvious the club need more options up front.
Whether there is just a dearth of strikers on the market or not, recruitment chief Nick Hammond and head coach Tony Pulis should be making it their primary objective.
Forget midfielder Morgan Schneiderlin and use that £18million to buy a forward that can challenge Salomon Rondon for his place.
5. Cup form remains a sore point:
Albion have now been knocked out of the last three cup competitions by lower-league opposition. Supporters can put up with shocks, it happens occasionally, but it's happening far too often under Tony Pulis. When the team is going so well in the league, the cups take on added significance.
It's highly unlikely the Baggies are ever going to win the league, but there is a genuine possibility of glory in the cups. Limping out in such unsatisfactory fashion will have all-but ended the season for some supporters.
