Do West Brom and Ryan Mason have a good enough squad to win Premier League promotion?

3 months ago

Jonny Drury and Lewis Cox discuss the opening seven games - and whether West Brom have a good enough squad to win promotion.

Transcript

00:01Isaac Price has been talking this week,

00:03basically saying West Brom's squad is good enough to challenge at the top end of the table.

00:07A sentiment in certain ways I kind of agree with him on.

00:10I think the quality of this Albion squad is there to be seen.

00:14We have discussed there are kinks in the armour, which there are, they're always going to be.

00:17You know, Albion, you know, are no longer at the top table in the championship.

00:21They're kind of on the second rung, you would say, you know,

00:24in recent years I've maybe been on the third rung.

00:26But is the squad, Cox, in its current format or its current,

00:32format's not the right word, but current state,

00:36is it good enough to challenge at the top end of the table?

00:41Whether that be automatically, which I don't think they are,

00:44but, you know, certainly playoffs.

00:47I think it's good enough to challenge for a top six place, isn't it?

00:50For fifth or sixth.

00:51Do I see Alvin pushing for a finish in third or fourth?

00:55I'm not sure.

00:56Well, certainly automatic fields.

00:58Now, look, we still don't know quite the strength of it at the very top,

01:01do we?

01:02The table's still settling down.

01:03I don't think Middlesbrough will necessarily stay automatic.

01:05Stoke at the minute, Bristol City, second and third.

01:08Don't expect those two sides with respect for them to stay around there.

01:12So perhaps it's a really weak, you know,

01:15you've got your usual suspects up there, haven't you?

01:17You know, Leicester, Sheffield United,

01:19one or two others,

01:20but it hasn't played out like that yet.

01:23Yes, it's early and things are settling down.

01:26So, but I think it's a good enough,

01:29I think the squad is good enough to push for,

01:31you know, fifth if they can, sixth if they can.

01:34And that's what I expect really, Johnny.

01:35I think we were saying last night, weren't we,

01:37when we were out and about that I really see this

01:40as the best case scenario, fifth, sixth,

01:41and possibly in the region down to tenth, really.

01:44That's my reading of it so far.

01:45That's what we've used to seeing for the last few years now, isn't it?

01:50And yeah, yeah.

01:54We've all praised the recruitment and the squad building, haven't we?

01:58And should it turn out,

01:59I think even better than we've all sort of thought

02:01and Albion recover from the fellows thing,

02:03that they're okay up front.

02:05Should it be better than,

02:06even better than we all think,

02:08then, you know,

02:10they can really solidify a playoff place.

02:12But at the moment, I think most people think

02:15best case scenario, sneak into the top six.

02:18Yeah, yeah.

02:19No, that is...

02:20And I think that's in line with expectations, isn't it, Johnny?

02:23Yeah, I think it is.

02:23Where people are...

02:24I think it is.

02:25You know, my view's been eighth.

02:27You know, if he's get eighth or even top ten,

02:28I think it's a good season.

02:29But, you know, a bold statement from Price.

02:31And I think he is, you know,

02:33on a roundabout way, right, you know,

02:34they are good enough.

02:35It's just whether they can sustain him.

02:36Yeah.

02:37I think quickly, there's a bit of frustration from some,

02:41and I kind of understand it,

02:43that, you know, they'd say,

02:46well, look, with the fellow sale,

02:47people are sort of like, you know,

02:48if we have got any sort of right-winger body in,

02:53you know, the squad would be stronger for it.

02:55And I think they'd probably mean,

02:56as well as an Illing junior.

02:58Now, I think it possibly does Illing junior,

03:01maybe a bit of disrespect.

03:02We don't know yet that he can't be a regular

03:03right-sided option for Albion.

03:05I understand the sentiment of, look,

03:07yeah, it's going to become a bit of a theme of the season

03:10and the rhetoric, isn't it?

03:11Fellows went and a right-sided player didn't come in.

03:14Now, I get it,

03:16but we still don't know quite yet, do we?

03:19Yes, Illing junior is mostly left,

03:20but that remains to be seen.

03:22And we can make that judgment, can't we,

03:23in a few weeks, maybe, or a month or so.

03:26But, yeah, I think the frustration is people were saying,

03:29if that player came in as well,

03:32maybe, if you could make that happen,

03:33then I think we're probably more lined up

03:35to be stronger for a top six shout, maybe.

03:39And look, there's other nuances, aren't there, Johnny?

03:41That's before we get into maybe the striker debate

03:43and the fact that it's Erna Hegeber's first season.

03:46How many goals are he going to score?

03:47What's the Josh Madger situation like at the moment?

03:49That's a whole podcast within itself, isn't it?

03:52And then the fact that DK, you know,

03:53when are we going to see him play?

03:54And that's that.

03:56You know, as we've said before,

03:58it's pretty light up there too.

Do West Brom and Ryan Mason have a good enough squad to win Premier League promotion?

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