West
Brom and Southampton played out a goalless draw at The Hawthorns that will not stick
long in the memory for those present. In a drab affair, the main talking point was
Stuart Attwell’s contentious decision not to award the Baggies a penalty, after
Callum McManaman initially seemed to have been felled. Saints had the better of
the possession, particularly in the second half as they pushed for a winner;
however that possibility seemed less likely as the game went on.
Both teams had significant players back at
their disposal after transfer stand-offs with Tottneham were resolved. Saido
Berahino and Victor Wanyama both stayed put, and were back in action for their
respective clubs, although the England international had to wait for his chance
from the bench. Meanwhile, Jonas Olsson, James McClean and James Morrison were
replaced by new boy Jonny Evans, McManaman and former Saint Rickie Lambert for
the hosts. As for Southampton; Wanyama, debutant Virgil van Dijk and Jay
Rodriguez came in for Oriol Romeu, Maya Yoshida and Sadio Mané.
West Brom kicked the game off however they
were immediately on the back foot as Southampton attempted to implement their
passing game. James Ward-Prowse and Steven Davis were linking well in the
centre of midfield, while Dušan Tadić and Cédric Soares were also combining with
success on the right wing, but Saints were unable to penetrate the Baggies back
four in the early moments of the game. Moreover, it was West Brom who managed
to get behind the Southampton rearguard just after the 15-minute mark. Rickie
Lambert picked the ball up on the halfway line, before setting McManaman down
the inside right channel to race onto it. The former Wigan man scampered into
the box and beat the lunging Matt Targett to the ball, before falling rather
dramatically to the floor after the England Under-21 international seemed to
make contact. To the initial incredulity of Tony Pulis, referee Stuart Attwell
waved the penalty appeals away, however post-match, the West Brom boss stated
that it was a dive, and that he would talk to McManaman regarding his
behaviour. On second viewing, Pulis believed that the winger was already
tumbling to the floor before Targett slid in. Bizarrely, Ronald Koeman did not
concur with his counterpart, and declared that the young left-back was “lucky”
not to concede a penalty. After that, the game reverted to its previous pattern
– Southampton controlling the play, but without finding that proverbial killer
pass. Jay Rodgriguez was making several decent runs however the Saints engine
room were working the ball from side to side, instead of trying to slide the
England international through on goal. Finally, Rodriguez did have an
opportunity to notch his first Premier League goal of the season after getting
on the end of a Tadić cross towards the end of the half. Despite playing in his
less favoured position on the right wing, Tadić was having some joy against
Chris Brunt, as he jinked inside to dink the ball to Rodriguez, but Southampton’s
No 9 could only head wide.
As the second half began, Saints turned the
screw as they started to move the ball around with more vigour and purpose. Several
set-piece opportunities came and went, before the inevitable introduction of
Berahino in the 55th minute. He replaced Lambert who received a
rousing reception from all four stands at The Hawthorns, although the same
could not be said for Berahino. The wantaway striker was mainly cheered and
applauded, but a noticeable portion of the home crowd voiced their disapproval
of his behaviour. Minutes later, the
Baggies fans probably thought that they would gain the lead after Maarten
Stekelenburg dropped an incoming set-piece, but the Dutch ‘stopper managed to
throw himself on top of the ball in front of Gareth McAuley. It was a rare
foray forward from West Brom, and Southampton replied as Graziano Pellè darted
down the left before passing the ball across goal but the onrunning Rodriguez
could not connect. Meanwhile, Van Dijk and Wanyama were particularly impressive
as they broke up any West Brom counterattacking opportunities, before setting
Southampton forward, yet the team as a whole lacked urgency. Mané entered the
fray in place of Rodriguez, and Tadić endeavoured to engineer chances from
either wing as he repeatedly crossed the ball into the box, but with little
success as he rarely found a man in a green shirt. Upfront, Pellè’s holdup play
deserted him at times – failing to reproduce his recent good form, as the game
fizzled out. While West Brom offered very little going forward, Southampton
were unable to break their resolve. Despite their inabilities in an offensive
sense, Saints did have reason to be optimistic from a defensive viewpoint as
they earned a third consecutive clean sheet in the league.
Man
of the Match
Virgil
van Dijk: The
Dutch centre-back undoubtedly impressed on his debut. While José Fonte looked
nervous in possession on occasion, Van Dijk was assured and composed on the ball.
His physical capabilities were also under question at The Hawthorns as Salomón
Rondón and Lambert gave him a warm welcome to the Premier League, but he stood
up to the challenge. Both elements of his game were encapsulated in one moment
in the second half, as he shouldered a West Brom player off the ball in the
left-back position, before clipping the ball perfectly down the line for Tadić
to run onto. There was one moment where Rondón escaped his clutches and fired
wide after the Dutchman had his back to the striker, but he should have been
made aware of the Venezuelan’s presence by his team-mates. It will be
interesting to see how he copes with Manchester United’s frontline who will obviously
pose more questions than West Brom’s attackers.
Teams
and Ratings
West Brom
Myhill 6 – Dawson 6, McAuley 6, Evans 6
(Olsson 86’ N/A), Brunt 5 – McManaman 6 (McClean 61’ 5), Yacob 6, Fletcher (C)
6, Gardner 6 – Rondón 4, Lambert 6 (Berahino 55’ 5)
Bookings:
Brunt
Southampton
Stekelenburg 5 – Soares 7 (Yoshida 75’ 6),
Fonte (C) 5, Van Dijk 7, Targett 5 – Wanyama 7 – S. Davis 6, Ward-Prowse 6 – Tadić
7, Rodriguez 6 (Mané 67’ 6) – Pellè 5
No comments:
Post a Comment