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English Premier League: West Brom season review – Bags packed for division two

By Orri Benatar

WEST BROMWICH, ENGLAND - APRIL 21: General view outside the stadium prior to the Premier League match between West Bromwich Albion and Liverpool at The Hawthorns on April 21, 2018 in West Bromwich, England. (Photo by Matthew Lewis/Getty Images)
WEST BROMWICH, ENGLAND - APRIL 21: General view outside the stadium prior to the Premier League match between West Bromwich Albion and Liverpool at The Hawthorns on April 21, 2018 in West Bromwich, England. (Photo by Matthew Lewis/Getty Images) /
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The Baggies plummeted to last place in the Premier League this season. They will be off to the Championship to re-pack and re-group.

West Brom Season Review

Albion was able to win their first two games of the season. Two 1-0 wins over Bournemouth and Burnley gave us the idea that West Brom would once again compete for a top-half position. How wrong we were. The Baggies went on a dismal 18-game winless run from late-August to early-January and were stuck in the bottom three at Christmas.

During that losing run, manager Tony Pulis was fired, caretaker manager Gary Megson was replaced by Alan Pardew, and Pardew was eventually sacked in early April. Darren Moore took over as West Brom’s fourth manager during an eight-game losing streak. Moore was able to make one final push out of the bottom three as West Brom had a five-match unbeaten run before the final day.

It was too little too late as West Brom finished dead last in the league on 31 points. They tallied six wins, four managers, 19 losses, and 31 goals. Despite Darren Moore winning EPL Manager of the Month in April, West Brom sees themselves returning to the Championship for the first time since 2009-10.

Biggest Win – 1-0 at Man United (April 15th)

Out of six wins, West Brom’s surprise victory over Manchester United was their biggest of the season. Jay Rodriguez’s winner didn’t just earn West Brom three points, it also gave Manchester City the EPL title with the 1-0 scoreline at Old Trafford. It was by far the best moment for Baggie fans to look back on in an otherwise terrible campaign.

Heaviest Defeat – 3-1 at Stoke (December 23rd)

With 19 defeats to choose from, I went with one during the busy Christmas schedule against another team that faced relegation. West Brom had just lost 2-1 to Manchester United and went to Stoke for a cold, Saturday night game.

The defense could not keep their composure in stoppage time in both halves. Stoke scored two of their three goals in stoppage time. West Brom wouldn’t get out of the bottom three after that defeat.

Best Player – Jay Rodriguez

The obvious pick was their top scorer. Jay Rodriguez netted seven goals in the EPL and 11 in all competitions. It was his best season since that breakout year he had with Southampton in 2013-14. Rodriguez turned up against the best teams all season. He scored the winner against United, two versus Liverpool in that FA Cup upset, and an equalizer to earn a point against Arsenal. A slight bright spot in a dark season.

Worst Player – Everyone Else

Tough to really pinpoint one terrible player in a last-place season. It was quite bad for West Brom who had two more wins than managers (6 to 4). Darren Moore kept pushing them up, but Pulis and Pardew left him with too much work to bring West Brom back up for the ultimate great escape. West Brom tends to not stay in the Championship too long though.

They spent only two years in the second division from 2006-2008. They’ll be back.

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