Analysis: Stoke a window of what West Brom could become

But they comfortably beat Albion on Saturday – the second time they have done so this season.

And if the Baggies aren’t careful, they too could soon be another club languishing in the Championship with faint hopes of getting out.

If you began the season on the day Albion first lost at Stoke – back on October 1 – they would currently be sat 18th in the table, five points above the relegation zone.

With five games still to play, they would be fighting to avoid dropping into League One.

That is how bad their form has been over the past 30 games.

It’s a staggering collapse for a side that was in the Premier League last season.

It’s completely and utterly unacceptable based on what this squad of players cost and what they earn each week.

And fans have every right to be angry – especially as woeful performances like this one have become so easy to predict.

When Fulham visited The Hawthorns a month ago, the Baggies comfortably beat the league leaders.

Why did they do it? First of all the pressure was off, nobody expected them to win.

And the players probably wanted to prove a point – that they are still good enough to go toe-to-toe with the best in the division.

The Baggies were very good that day.

But they were rubbish in the matches that followed at Bristol City and Birmingham.

And heading into the Bournemouth match last Wednesday, all fans were saying the same thing.

With the pressure off against another promotion chasing side, supporters joked it was the type of game Albion would turn up in.

Those comments were followed by: “We’ll probably beat Bournemouth but get turned over by Stoke.”

And the fact that statement has come should be so embarrassing to this group of players.

It really did come as no surprise to see the Baggies play so badly on Saturday.

For the best part of 70 minutes they created absolutely nothing.

To Stoke’s credit, they were compact and organised.

But there was zero invention, zero creativity and zero flair to Albion’s play. They created next to nothing.

And to top it all, they also gave Stoke a two-goal head start.

It was in the first half the visitors opened the scoring when a well-worked free-kick ended with some comical Albion defending.

Joe Allen’s quick-thinking allowed Lewis Baker to hit the byline.

And he then sent in a dangerous low cross which Jake Livermore poked through the legs of Sam Johnstone and into his own net.

Stoke’s second goal arrived just before the hour mark and again came from a quick free-kick.

But this time the defending was even worse.

Tommy Smith calmly chipped the ball into the box as if he was using a nine iron on a golf tee.

And with Kyle Bartley having switched off and seemingly away with the fairies, Jacob Brown then darted into the box and headed the ball past Sam Johnstone and into the net.

Albion did manage to pull a goal back in the 73rd minute when Johnstone pumped a long ball forward.

Andy Carroll knocked it down for Karlan Grant, who saw a shot blocked.

But the ball then fell for Callum Robinson who fired past Jack Bonham and into the net.

Having been dreadful, Albion almost then got themselves back on terms when Carroll saw a brilliant header well saved by the Stoke keeper.

But in stoppage time – with the Baggies pushing forward – Stoke made sure they got the win they deserver when Baker finished off a swift counter-attack.

Over the course of the 90 minutes, Albion had been dreadful.

And it really felt as if the players had very little motivation to play in this game.

They know promotion is gone. They know they have failed. And they know fans have had enough of them.

You get the feeling they just want the season to be over.

And that really showed in their performance.

For Steve Bruce, facing the press after the game must have been a nightmare – with their very little the 61-year-old could say that he hasn’t said before.

“These two results (Bournemouth and Stoke) encapsulate my eight weeks here, that’s for sure,” the boss said.

“It’s a frustration for us all. The goals we gave away, the first two, is something I never saw coming because we’re usually rock solid in that department. But in the first half we didn’t get going.

“We passed the ball slowly, we didn’t really have any penetration in the forward areas.

“It was another frustrating afternoon, and that unfortunately has happened too often.

“It’s the reason why we are where we are.”

Bruce pointed to some mitigating factors for his side’s poor display.

The game against Stoke was Albion’s third in six days.

And the boss had said in his pre-match press conference that in an ideal world he’d make four or five changes to his starting XI due to how quickly matches were coming around.

Instead, though, he made just one with Jayson Molumby coming into the side for Darnell Furlong in a move that saw Taylor Gardner-Hickman move to right wing-back.

“It was the third game in six days, and there were a few who looked jaded,” Bruce admitted.

“Physically, we put in our best stats of the season on Wednesday against Bournemouth.

“You’ve got to be able to go again in the Championship, it’s what it demands. It’s Saturday-Tuesday-Saturday.

“We didn’t look right from the kick off.

“We were slow in and out of possession, and it was a deeply frustrating afternoon for us.

“I think it’s the first time since I’ve been in charge where we’ve played three games in a week.

“In hindsight, maybe I should have made more changes.

“But I haven’t got much to change to, really, if I’m being brutally honest, especially in the midfield areas.

“In hindsight, maybe I should’ve made four or five.”

While Bruce was once again left to bemoan Albion’s inconsistency, the boss did admit the squad needs a massive overhaul this summer.

And something fans might have to get their heads around is the club paying more money to get rid of players than on signings this summer.

The vast majority of Albion’s squad is contracted for the 2022/23 campaign.

But this group needs a refresh.

Some players are going to have to be paid up and told to go on their way.

That might mean Albion shopping for frees and utilising the loan market.

But that isn’t a bad thing with Millwall’s Jed Wallace, Reading’s John Swift and Blackburn’s Joe Rothwell just three of a host of top Championship players who are set to become free agents this summer.

Albion need to bring in new players who aren’t burdened by the past and who are hungry to succeed.

The mentality of the squad needs to change.

As Bruce said: “We have to bring a fresher, younger look to everything.”

Will Bruce be the man who gets to lead that overhaul?

Having won just three of his 12 games so far, the boss knows he is fighting for his future.

And that decision – along with which players are signed and let go – is something the Baggies hierarchy has to get right.

If they don’t, Albion will soon be very average – just like Stoke.