No, I am not talking about Michael Owen, who, surprise, surprise, has recovered fitness and rediscovered where the back of the net is, when his contract is up for renewal, but Tony Mowbray.
His WBA team have tried to play football this season and to that end, have been very successful, despite what the league table might say. Box to box, at times they have played as well us any team outside the big 4 and with a little more good fortune in front of goal, could easily have another 7-8 points in the bag. Mowbray refuses to abandon his principles and wants to play the right way ,hopefully, he and Albion will get their reward sooner, rather than later. It must be frustrating to be a WBA fan, but to their credit, most have said that they are happy with the performances and enjoy watching the team play. Despite what the cynic inside some of us might think, not all decisions in football are made purely upon results and I know two very big clubs in the UK, who have Mowbray at the very top of their list, should they need to find a new coach and all do, at some time or other.
I really hope that they win today and West Brom could hardly be facing Portsmouth at a better time. Pompey were in Germany late on Thursday night for a UEFA Cup tie and a 3-2 loss to Wolfsburg, signalled the end of their european campaign for this season. That was the fourth game running that they have conceded two goals or more and there are clear signs that they are running on empty at present. This will be their 11th start in 44 days, which included two away games in Europe and for most players, also involved an additional trip and game for their national team. The squad has been stretched by injury over this time and Traore and Diarra, two key players, will again be missing today. Over the same period, WBA have played just seven times, today will be number eight, their players have not lost heart and are desperate to get started on the climb up the table.
Portsmouth have financial troubles too ( join the club) and have apparently been "officially" put up for sale this morning, which was the worst kept secret in football.
I am backing Albion to get the win that will take them off the foot of the table and restore a little of my faith, in the beautiful game.
4.5 points WBA -1/4 ball 2.33 asian line.... now 2.14
Good Luck.
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