Leroy’s verdict on the WBA issues

Tony Pulis took as by surprise by going 4-4-2 at the start of the second half and we didn’t handle it because nobody would have imagined he’d do such a thing.

Pulis is a crafty old dog but let’s be honest West Brom still needed a massive piece of luck to get back into the game and Winston Reid was desperately unlucky to get that deflection into his own net.

After the way we had controlled things in the first half it was all so bitterly disappointing. Like all of you I feel flat, disappointed and let down and now we have to grind out a win – somehow, somewhere – we have to break this cycle.

Some of the problems we are suffering remain self-inflicted because we are losing the ball in good positions. Having said all that there were good things to admire.

The goal of course was sensational and in the first 45 minutes Lanzini and Zarate  as a pair looked as good as it gets. I was also delighted that there had been no hangover from the  Spurs defeat which there quite easily could have been.

There will be criticism of our performance – there always is when so much more looks possible – but we are being hit with some colossal bad luck such as that Albion goal but far more importantly the loss of Diafra Sakho.

I have always seen him as the key player in this team and Slaven said the same in his post-match press conference which is why I was surprised when he played him down the right previously.

We now have a major problem on our hands and I have to put my hands up and say I’m not sure how the manager will sort things out.

At a club like ours to lose one important player makes life difficult – to lose three of them is a real problem. I have a great deal of faith in the manager and every passing week sees Payet and Valencia on the way back.

I’m sure the boss will work things between the likes of Lanzini, Zarate, Carroll and Jelavic but we’ll need to see the extent of the Sakho injury before  exploring the various options available.