Comment: Do West Brom need another tweak to the system?

Having persisted with a back three and an unconvincing insistence on playing it out from the back for the first third of the campaign, Moore pulled off a tactical masterstroke against Leeds.

Flummoxing the league leaders of the time with a switch to a 4-3-3 system, the Baggies put in their most complete performance of the season to win 4-1 in a memorable game at The Hawthorns.

It sparked a nine-match unbeaten run and has provided the blueprint for the side ever since.

But the Baggies have only won one of their last five league games and that victory came away at crisis-club Bolton Wanderers on an evening where off-field protests dominated.

Has the 4-3-3 formation run its course? Is it time for another change?

In recent weeks there have been times when the midfield three has looked overrun, particularly towards the end of games when legs begin to tire.

The Baggies should have seen out games against Norwich and Middlesbrough at home, but suffered late goals in both, and instead of picking up six points, they got only one.

Dwight Gayle has got the best goals-per-minute ratio of anybody in the Championship who has notched eight or more times.

He bags every 105 minutes, and yet he’s been playing as wing-forward in this system with Jay Rodriguez taking up a central role.

There is an argument that does not get the best out of Gayle’s natural predatory instincts.

However, the statistics suggest otherwise. Gayle has eight goals from 969 minutes as a central striker this season, or one every 121 minutes.

He’s scored seven goals from 610 minutes on the wing, or one every 87 minutes.

Watching Gayle work out on the wing can be infuriating, but in this system, Rodriguez drops deep to get the ball and the Newcastle loanee naturally drifts inside.

Perhaps this minor dip in form is nothing to do with formations and tactics.

Losing the pace of Harvey Barnes and Matt Phillips in quick succession is a body blow bound to make an impact.

Without their direct running the Baggies have lacked the same threat on the counter-attack, but hopefully new signings Jacob Murphy and Jefferson Montero will help plug the gap.

Moving back to a three-man defence would give plenty of supporters sweaty palms, but the best teams are capable of playing a number of formations and picking one suitable to the occasion and the opposition.

However, with out-and-out wingers like Murphy and Montero now in the squad, a traditional 4-4-2 or 4-5-1 has emerged as another option.

If the Baggies do persist with 4-3-3, as they might be encouraged to considering Stefan Johansen’s success in that system for Fulham last season, they need to be more flexible towards the end of games.

After 70 minutes of tireless work in the engine room, the midfield needs help from the dug-out capable of sending on reinforcements.

Moore’s attacking philosophy is one to admire, and has restored joy to life at The Hawthorns this season.

But it is this stage of the season when victories need to be determinedly ground out, flexibility late on is necessary.

Albion may not need another masterstroke formation change, but they do need to be slightly more canny in the final 15 minutes.