Express & Star

Ally Robertson: Matheus Pereira the man on everyone's lips at West Brom

Matheus Pereira is the man all Albion fans are talking about at the minute.

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Matheus Pereira of West Bromwich Albion celebrates after scoring a goal to make it 1-0 with Charlie Austin of West Bromwich Albion. (AMA)

And I can understand why. For me, he has been our best player this season.

He is a wonderfully gifted footballer and reminds me a lot of Johnny Giles – they are very similar.

Pereira – like Giles – has excellent technical ability. He also has a wonderful eye for a pass.

He seems to be playing one-step ahead of everyone else, and it’s that intelligence that allows him to make things happen.

For the other players, he must be a joy to play with.

They know when he is on the ball he can not only spot a pass, but he can also deliver it.

That will give everyone a lift, but especially the other forwards.

It’s great for Grady Diangana, Matt Phillips and Charlie Austin to know – if they make a run– there is every chance Pereira will deliver the ball exactly where they want it.

It will allow them to play with more confidence and freedom.

And Pereira needs those runners to help him shine.

If they aren’t producing that movement, he will have to take an extra touch.

But what’s really impressive is his ability to hold onto the ball when those first-time passes aren’t on.

Physically he is also very good.

He looks to be a number 10 that is perfectly suited to the English game.

It was revealed this week Albion have to pay £8.25million to sign him permanently.

And I say get it done. Singing a player like that proves to the fans that we mean business.

I hope he is an Albion player for many years to come.

Finally this week I just want to touch on Charlie Austin’s celebration after he netted that first league goal against Cardiff.

Earlier in the game, he had twice been denied by the keeper.

But good centre-forwards keep going. And his goal was a reward for all the hard work he put in.

It was great to see him call over all his team mates for the celebration.

That is something that has really struck me about the team this year – the camaraderie is excellent.

They actually look like they are enjoying playing together and want to do the best they can for the club and the supporters.

That is absolutely fantastic – team spirit takes you such a long way.

But it isn’t easy to build and, for me, that’s why Slaven Bilic deserves so much praise.