Steven Reid warns West Brom to stay ambitious
Defender Steven Reid today warned West Brom they could be dragged into a Premier League relegation battle if they take another top-half finish for granted.
The Baggies have finished above halfway in the top flight in the last two seasons with a best-ever Premier League finish of eighth achieved last term.
But Reid has warned they cannot rest on their laurels after recalling a slump he suffered with Blackburn Rovers the year after a stellar campaign.
Reid helped Rovers finish seventh in the Premier League in 2008 but they flirted with relegation a year later before ending 15th.
He said: "We can't rest on our laurels and think we have arrived as a Premier League team.
"We just have to go again next season and hopefully equal or better what we did last season.
"At Blackburn, we suffered with a lot of injuries when Paul Ince came in as manager.
"I was out for most of the season, we lost David Bentley and big players like David Dunn got injured.
"If you get injuries to one or two key players in your team it affects your results.
"We saw at some points last season how it can affect your team when you're missing key players.
"It's just a case of having a good pre-season, getting everyone as fit as we can and hopefully, with one or two additions, build."
And Reid reckons the Baggies' senior players must play a key role in keeping the squad focused.
He said: "We have a great set of lads in the dressing room, which is part of the reason I wanted to stay at the club – I have really enjoyed my time.
"There are a lot of big characters in the dressing room and players that will dig each other out when needs be."