West Bromwich Albion, despite their early promising position towards the top end of the Championship, have now succumbed to their first league defeat of the season.
It was former Baggies loanee Andreas Weimann who broke hearts all around the Hawthorns late on in a 1-0 loss, with the hosts being made to rue their wastefulness in the forward areas, having fired 18 shots on Derby County’s goal in total, compared to the visitors only mustering up a measly four.
Ryan Mason and Co won’t want to dwell too much on this unfortunate loss; however, with Isaac Price hopeful he can get back to his best across the rest of September, having just suffered from a rare off-day in Baggies blue and white against John Eustace’s men.
How Price has improved this season
Price couldn’t quite stamp his mark on proceedings last season, having joined mid-way through a second-tier campaign that was collapsing under the former short-lived tenure of Tony Mowbray.
The promising Northern Irishman did collect a solitary goal and assist from those 13 league starts under Mowbray.
Still, it’s this season, under the tutelage of Mason, who is known to get more out of youngsters, where he has come into his own as a forceful attacking presence for the revitalised promotion candidates.
From just five Championship games so far, the “magnificent” 21-year-old – as he’s been dubbed by scout Jacek Kulig – has a hefty tally of three goals and one assist next to his name, with a brace against Wrexham sticking out as the Baggies shocked Phil Parkinson’s Red Dragons.
Having amazingly netted against Germany on international duty with Northern Ireland, too, it’s clear that West Brom’s promotion aims rest on the ex-Everton midfielder keeping up these sublime performances, with a worry he could fade the more the season chugs along.
While the added boost of Price firing on all cylinders has certainly helped raise the optimism levels that promotion could be on the cards, particularly with Tom Fellows no longer being around, other more experienced members of Mason’s squad might be even more crucial in ensuring West Brom go the distance.
West Brom star is more important than Price
Fellows wasn’t the only painful departure West Brom had to cope with this summer, as the likes of Darnell Furlong also left the building after a long-standing affinity with the club.
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On top of that, another loyal and seasoned servant, Kyle Bartley, also announced his retirement, with Mason now having to rely on a whole host of new signings to shine across the full season, even when the pressure of trying to seal promotion is severely ramped up.
Thankfully, West Brom’s dependable number 27 in Alex Mowatt, didn’t desert the building this summer, with his know-how of the Championship arguably making him a more important member of Mason’s camp than Price in their bid to finally return to the Premier League.
After all, although he has no goals or assists so far this campaign, it’s clear from his overall numbers in the EFL’s elite division to date that he is still someone the former Tottenham Hotspur coach can rely on in some crunch situations to come, more so than an inexperienced Price, who is yet to be exposed to the heat of a promotion race.
Games played
134
Goals scored
13
Assists
9
Playoff finishes
1x
In total, when regularly competing near the top of the Championship pile, Mowatt has managed to tally up an impressive 13 goals and nine assists for the Baggies, with seven of those goal contributions coming during the 2023/24 season, as the Carlos Corberan-led outfit unfortunately slipped up in the playoffs.
Still, despite that promotion near-miss, it’s clear to see why the “sensational” midfielder – as he has been labelled by ex-boss Steve Evans – continues to be picked week in week out, with Mason hopeful he can spark into life shortly with some more of his trademark bullet strikes.
Once added to the ranks on a free transfer, it’s amazing to see how vital a glue Mowatt continues to be, with yet another Baggies manager going out of his way to start him consistently as promotion is sought after.
