Lewis Cox's West Brom analysis: Boss hit nail on head on mentality shift

"It was alright, I just said to the team, somewhere down the line, somewhere in the distance we have to come here and not be satisfied with a fighting point."

Mowbray hit the nail on the head there. In isolation the point was not a poor one, Albion struggle to beat Millwall historically. It was not a great one either. It was entirely predictable.

It was a battling performance. A backs against the wall display with some resilience and grit. Going to The Den is never pleasant and the Baggies were not the only side looking to respond from a bad result previously.

It was not to be totally sniffed at - but it is not enough for what Albion want or need to be.

Mowbray's wider point was that his side lacked control and domination with the ball against a physical side like Millwall.

The head coach rated and respected the fighting qualities on display - he knew it was going to be a battle in Bermondsey - but he wanted to see far more in possession from his troops, even for the more physical players he selected such as Ousmane Diakite in midfield.

Millwall had more of the ball and more passes than their opponents. Alex Neil's men had more shots (11 to seven), more shots on target (six to two) and more big chances than their visitors. Both expected goals (xG) were low, but the Lions' was more than double the Baggies' (0.98 to 0.42).

In summary Millwall were the better side. That was clear to the naked eye, too. Albion deserved to be behind to big Jake Cooper's headed opener and could have easily trailed by more by that early stage.

The equaliser, fortunate as Joe Bryan turned into his own net on 25 minutes, was against the run of play. That led to Albion's best spell and they could have edged ahead prior to half-time.

But the second half belonged to Millwall. It was not quite one-way traffic but the openings mainly belonged to the hosts and goalkeeper Joe Wildsmith was the visitors' best player.

That is not what Mowbray desires. He does not expect Albion, even in their current guise, to struggle in these departments against - with all respect - Millwall who are decent but nothing more in this division.

He is right. Albion have a quality squad in the Championship. It is a side littered with talent for this division and it should be more dominant in games against mid-table opposition.

In these early weeks of Mowbray's reign, the Baggies are caught in between two different philosophies and mindsets.

Mowbray as a manager profile is about as far removed from Carlos Corberan's militant pragmatism as Albion could have managed. It was quite clear styles would change - by design - and Mowbray admitted the task of his second coming would be to build from a solid base left by the Spaniard and set about attacking improvements.

At the moment the squad is still figuring out what the 61-year-old head coach's demands are - and vice versa Mowbray is still learning about his players.

That was highlighted last week in a three-match week as Mowbray made six, three and five changes to his starting 11. He is still trying to find a formula with a squad further added to last month.

Mowbray has so far not been able to maintain the solid base that brought an endless supply of clean sheets. Albion are without a shutout since Corberan's last game on December 22 - 12 games ago. The away record reads a shocking one win in 14 games.

His return is seven points from six games featuring two wins and a draw. Supporters may have a concern that the impact on Albion's attack has been minimal. But under Mowbray the Baggies scored five in a game - admittedly against poor opposition - and netted a stoppage-time winner, neither of which were managed under Corberan.

But new loan marksman Adam Armstrong was largely shackled or on the periphery out on the left flank on Saturday. Albion must address that. Tottenham teenager Will Lankshear was worthy of the first start of his loan but struggled to make an impact.

There were some plus points from south east London. Defender Semi Ajayi featured from the off, his first appearance since October, and came through 90 minutes improving as it went on.

The same could be sent for combative midfielder Diakite, who fans have craved more of. He is a player for a specific occasion and fared well here.

But the best moment came 13 minutes from time when Daryl Dike was introduced one year and five days on from his Achilles nightmare at Ipswich. Having come through an under-21s cameo last week he was unscathed here and got involved in the action.

The availability of Ajayi and Dike is a boost for the weeks ahead. Albion are badly missing dominant defender Kyle Bartley from the previous weekend's daft full-time dismissal.

Somehow - and it says a lot about the inconsistent standard of this season's Championship top six chasing pack - Albion remain sixth. They will surely be unable to limp towards a play-off spot like this. Rivals are limping too, however. Sides always emerge from the pack and Coventry are doing so at the moment.

Tough tests, different tests, against some of the division's best sides are ahead and Albion must be ready to show more.