After last week’s below-par performance against West Ham, Albion really needed to find a victory against in-form Norwich City to end a four-game winless streak.
It came as little surprise to hear that Ben Foster had won an immediate recall in favour of Boaz Myhill in goal. Graham Dorrans and Romelu Lukaku were also recalled to the starting XI as Steve Clarke stuck with his preferred 4-2-3-1 formation – despite Youssouf Mulumbu and Claudio Yacob being absent.
Albion started off in positive fashion and should’ve gone ahead inside the first three minutes. Goran Popov ‘The Albion Man’ found space down the left and sent over an fantastic cross which Lukuku narrowly headed over – it wouldn’t be the first time these two would link up!
After that it was Norwich who settled better than Albion. The Baggies struggled to create any meaningful chances – despite having Dorrans, Brunt, Morrison, Gera and Odemwingie in the middle. In fact, it was probably too much of a muchness with Albion unable to find pockets of space.
But when we did manage to find the spare man in midfield we looked dangerous. Brunt fed Morrison who spun and feed Lukaku. Unfortunately for the Belgium international the chance was on his weaker right foot and his effort was saved easily by Bunn in the Norwich goal.
Norwich took the lead in the 23rd minute when Robert Snodgrass was felled outside the area by a clumsy Peter Odemwingie challenge. The resulting free kick flew past Ben Foster. In real time it looked like an unstoppable effort .Replays and Foster’s reaction showed different.
Albion almost hit back immediately when Chris Brunt’s corner was bundled goalwards by Gareth McAuley. Bunn knew little about the point-blank save as the ball rebounded to safety.
Norwich were comfortable in possession and showed the confidence of a side who had not lost for ten games. Albion on the other hand looked devoid of any creativity. Too often we moved the ball around too slowly when crisp, incisive passing was needed around the Norwich box.
But we did manage to find an equaliser minutes before half time. Another excellent Chris Brunt corner saw Jonas Olsson head down and on to the crossbar. Zoltan Gera poked home from close range to level the scores. Odemwingie then cut inside and saw a left-foot effort whistle inches wide as Albion finished the half on top.
After the break
The first ten minutes of the half were frustrating for Albion. Clarke had seen enough of the ineffective Dorrans in favour of Fortune but the game turned scrappy with throw in after throw in awarded. Neither team were able to get the ball down and create any sort of chance. The momentum from the end of the first half had been lost.
It took the introduction of Shane Long on the hour mark to bring the game back to life. With his substitution Albion effectively had four forwards on the pitch. Albion looked more threatening and Odemwingie looked more willing to take his man on the outside and fire crosses in. One almost resulted in Lukaku having a tap-in. However he was denied by a last-gasp interception.
The pressure was mounting on the visitor’s defence who were retreating by the minute. A goal finally came in the 81st minute. Popov drove a fantastic cross from the byline towards the penalty spot. Lukaku out jumped his marker at the back post and drove a bullet header past Bunn.
Norwich applied late pressure with a series of free kicks into the danger zone. However, despite a couple of free headers, Foster wasn’t tested again as Albion hung on for three points.
On reflection
This wasn’t a stellar Albion performance but it was just what we needed after a disappointing few weeks. The Baggies were disjointed in the first half with Dorrans and Brunt almost getting in each other’s way. Clarke made a wise decision to call upon Fortune and reshuffle his pack after the break. The Scot also showcased his tactical knowledge using three different formations in the second half as we searched for three points. Overall, it was a solid victory with Foster largely untroubled. It felt good to get back to winning ways!
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